Advances in the Role of Short-chain Fatty Acids in Type 2 Diabetes

Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) play a major mediating role in gut microbiota regulation of host metabolism and are strongly associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), which improves glycemic, body weight, and lipid indices in T2DM patients. Although it has been suggested that SCFAs are expected to be novel therapeutic targets for T2DM, no review has been conducted. Therefore, this paper summarizes the biological properties of SCFAs, discusses the evidence that SCFAs regulate appetite, inflammation, pancreatic β-cells, lipid metabolism and hepatic glycogen metabolism, further clarifies the progress of research on regulating the role of SCFAs in T2DM and their mechanisms, and explores the potential of regulating SCFAs for the treatment of T2DM.