Gut bacteria fats, fiber, and metabolic health
Official title: Identification of human gut microbe-derived xenolipids: impact of fibers and host metabolic health
Funded at University of California at Davis · NIH-11326806 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks for fat-like molecules made by gut bacteria and how dietary fiber and a person's metabolic health change them in adults with type 2 diabetes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California at Davis NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Davis, United States) |
| Project start | June 15, 2024 |
| Project end | April 30, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $687,624 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DK137173-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11326806 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants would be adults with adult-onset (type 2) diabetes or metabolic risk factors who are willing to provide stool or blood samples or take part in sample-collection visits.
✕Less likely to help
People seeking immediate treatment changes or rapid symptom relief are unlikely to benefit because this is early-stage laboratory discovery work rather than a clinical therapy trial.
What this research studies
Scientists will grow a wide range of human gut bacteria in the lab and collect the molecules they produce, concentrating on bacterial fats called xenolipids such as cyclopropane fatty acids. They will screen these lipids in lab tests to see which human proteins they bind to and whether they alter metabolic signals. The team will compare how different types of dietary fiber change which lipids are produced and relate those patterns to measures of metabolic health like blood sugar and adipose (fat) tissue responses. The goal is to build a catalog of bioactive microbial fats that could point to new biomarkers, dietary approaches, or drug targets for adult-onset diabetes.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could identify bacterial fats that influence blood sugar or inflammation and lead to new diet-based strategies or drug targets for people with type 2 diabetes.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies show gut bacteria produce unique fatty acids and early lab data suggest such molecules can affect host metabolism, but the systematic discovery and testing of xenolipids in relation to fiber and human metabolic health is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
University of California at Davis
Davis, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Adams, Sean Harrison — University of California at Davis
- Study coordinator: Adams, Sean Harrison
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.