Gut microbiota as a regulator of energy homeostasis and ectopic fat deposition: mechanisms and implications for metabolic disorders

Gut microbiota manipulation yielded encouraging results for the treatment of different metabolic disorders in experimental models. However, changing intestinal microbiota may be more difficult in free-living individuals compared to standardized laboratory models, and its long-term consequences are unknown. To safely and effectively change human gut microflora, future research should highlight the complex hormonal, immunomodulatory and metabolic mechanisms underlying microbiota-host interactions in different tissues and candidate treatments should be evaluated in well designed trials with patient-oriented end-points.