Gut Microbiota and Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Severity in Type 2 Diabetes Patients

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) remains an important health issue worldwide. The increasing prevalence of NAFLD is linked to type 2 diabetes (T2D). The gut microbiota is associated with the development of NAFLD and T2D. However, the relationship between gut microbiota and NAFLD severity has remained unclear in T2D patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship of gut microbiota with the severity of NAFLD in T2D patients.

This cross-sectional study used transient elastography (FibroScan) to evaluate the severity of hepatic steatosis. We utilized qPCR to measure the abundance of Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Clostridium leptum group, Bacteroides, Bifidobacterium, Akkermansia muciniphila, and Escherichia coli.

Of 163 T2D patients, 83 with moderate to severe NAFLD had higher abundance of bacteria of the phylum Firmicutes with respect to 80 patients without NAFLD or with mild NAFLD. High abundance of the phylum Firmicutes increased the severity of NAFLD in T2D patients. A positive correlation between NAFLD severity and the phylum Firmicutes was found in T2D male patients with body mass index ≥24 kg/m² and glycated hemoglobin <7.5%.

Enrichment of the fecal microbiota with the phylum Firmicutes is significantly and positively associated with NAFLD severity in T2D patients. The gut microbiota is a potential predictor of NAFLD severity in T2D patients.