Gymnema sylvestre extract ameliorated streptozotocin‐induced hyperglycemia in T2DM rats via gut microbiota

Abstract Gymnema sylvestre (GS) has been traditionally used to treat diabetes mellitus (DM) and consumed as both food and medicine. The present work aimed to reveal the arresting hypoglycemic properties of GS leaves on type 2 DM (T2DM) rats meditated by gut microbiota pathway. After administration for 30 days, GS treatment observably improved the abnormal fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels, lipid profiles, and the glucose tolerance of the T2DM rats in a dose‐dependent manner. Furthermore, GS treatment reversibly restored the gut microbiota diversities in the T2DM rats based on the decreased Firmicute abundance and boosted Bacteroidetes abundance and Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio. Particularly, the KEGG pathway suggested that GS treatment strongly interfered with the glucose metabolism processes, such as the glycolysis from glucose 6‐phosphate and glucose, along with the changes in the relative abundances of the beneficial bacteria of Clostridium, Lactobacillus, and Bacteroides. In addition, the GS treatment dramatically promoted the contents of the acetic acid, the total short‐chain fatty acids in the T2DM rat feces. This study showcased the remarkable amelioration of GS on the metabolic disorders of blood glucose and lipids via the regulation of gut microbiota in T2DM rats, which could offer a new mechanism of GS as a potential natural antidiabetic food supplement for T2DM.