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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2016 Aug 1.
Published in final edited form as: Anaerobe. 2015 Jan 29;34:182–186. doi: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2014.12.009

Figure 1. Model of leptin-mediated inflammatory response during C. difficile infections.

Figure 1

Adipose tissue acts as a sensor of host nutritional status and secretes leptin (proportional to body fat). Leptin acts as a molecular link between nutrition and immunity and affects the risk, severity and outcomes of C. difficile infections. The mechanism of leptin actions could be via immune cells, non-immune cells or changes in the host microbiome and since obesity is associated with both elevated leptin levels but also “leptin resistance”, the effects of leptin-mediated actions could lead to diverse effects on the outcomes of C. difficile infections and needs further investigation.