The role of gut microbiota in the development of obesity in dogs

Abstract

The gut microbiota has become the subject of extensive research in the last decades. Intensive research has revealed its role in several functions related to energy metabolism as well as its importance in both health and illness. An imbalance in gut microbiota composition results in dysbiosis, which has been associated with metabolic disorders such as obesity. In the latter context, the gut microbiota appears to mediate the impact of diet on the host body weight. There are many studies in rodents that show profound changes in the composition and metabolic function of the gut microbiota in subjects with obesity, indicating its influence on the development of the problem. Usually, the microbiota of obese dogs has a modified Firmicutes:Bacteroidetes ratio, which returns to normal values after dietary intervention with diet-induced weight loss. The role of the gut microbiota on the development of dog obesity is a recent topic of research, which has been complex due to most of the studies being carried out using commercial extruded diets, which differ in their nutritional composition, resulting in controversial findings. Nevertheless, it has been shown that macro-nutrients from the diet are the most relevant factors that can modulate the microbiota’s composition in a particular way. Moreover, current studies indicate that a personalized nutritional intervention could modify the composition and function of gut microbiota in a positive manner, reducing the development of pathologies such as obesity.