As humans, we can think of ourselves as capsules that encase trillions of bacterial cells. A vast majority of bacterial cells line our gastrointestinal tract (GI). The population of cells within the gut may be referred to as a microbiome, microbiota, and/or gut flora. The functionality of microbes is essential to human health. Moreover, it’s what determines how our bodies will function with respect to health and disease. Alike all natural ecosystems, animal (including humans) and microbial populations rely heavily on the presence and abundance of one another. The mutual relationship between the two populations is critical to their survival and is made evident through symbiosis.
However, an increase in obesity-associated disorders has sparked research into both realms of genomic and environmental pathology concerning obesity, insulin resistance with diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Research also manages to shine light on the potential treatment of these diseases through the use of intestinal microbial diversity. The purpose of this paper is to attempt to evaluate and to discuss the recent efforts made in determining gut microbiota and its influences on the development of the aforementioned diseases.
Introduction
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obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular or CVD) that occur internally verses externally with respect to the human intestinal tract. The aforementioned investigation has led researchers and scientists to believe that the link between diseases and microbes rests with the development of nutritional deficiencies within human populations. However, recent studies has focused its attention toward the microbiological and biochemical mechanisms that may be at play with respect to intestinal microbes. Moreover, changes in gut bacteria may potentially have detrimental effects on the immune system in both compromised and in healthy