Table 4.
Experimental animal studies analyzing the effects of α-glucosidase inhibitors on gut microbiota.
| Anti-diabetic drugs | Animal model | Dose | Duration | Key results | Mechanism of action |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acarbose (94) | Zucker diabetic fatty rats | 32.27 mg/kg/day | 4 weeks | Actinobacteria↑ Bifidobacterium, Ruminococcus 2, Lactobacillus intestinalis↑ Metagenomic functional prediction: elevated carbohydrate transport and metabolism. |
Selectively increased the beneficial flora |
| Acarbose (134) | Old mice | 1,000 ppm | 8 months | Muribaculaceae↑ SCFA↑ | Modulated the fermentation products of the gut flora |
| Acarbose (136) | HS or PP-fed mice | 400 ppm | 28 days | Diet-dependent gut community structure alteration and SCFA increasing | Increased SCFA production |
| Acarbose (137) | STZ-induced HFHSD-fed SD rats | 30 mg/kg/day | 7 weeks |
Escherichia-Shigella↓ Muribaculaceae, Lachnospiraceae, Bifidobacterium, Ruminococcaceae_UCG-014, Ruminococcus_1, Romboutsia, Eggerthellaceae, Alistipes, Faecalibaculum, Ruminococcaceae_UCG-013 and Peptococcaceae↑ |
Beneficial composition of gut microbiota restored |
| Acarbose or miglitol (138) |
Collagen-induced arthritis mice | 500 mg/kg/day | 55 days | Firmicutes↑Oscillospira spp., Desulfovibrio spp. and Ruminococcus spp.↑ Lactobacillus spp., Anaeroplasman spp., Adlercreutzia spp., and RF39 spp.↓ |
Regulated immunity via Th17/Treg cells in the intestinal lamina propria |
| Voglibose (135) | HFD-fed C57BL/6 mice | 1 mg/kg/day | 12 weeks | the ratio of Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes↓ Plasm taurocholic, cholic acid and deoxycholic acid↑ |
Downregulated gene expression of CYP8B1 and HNF4α Upregulated gene expression of PGC1α |
| Miglitol (139) | HFHSD-fed rats | 0.04% miglitol plus in diet | 12 weeks |
Erysipelotrichaceae and Coriobacteriaceae↓ Plasm LPS↓ |
Reduced LPS levels in portal plasma |
| Miglitol (140) | ChREBP-knockout mice | 0.08% miglitol plus in diet | 8 weeks | Lactobacillales and Bifidobacterium↑ clostridium cluster XIVa↓ Fecal lactate↑ |
Increased cecal lactate contents and altered intestinal flora |
STZ, streptozocin; HFD, high-fat diet; HS, high-starch; PP, plant polysaccharides; HFHSD, high-fat, high-sucrose diet; SCFAs, short-chain fatty acids; HNF4α, hepatocyte nuclear factor 4alpha; PGC1α, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ co-activator-1α; LPS, lipopolysaccharide.