Gestational diabetes and risk of type 2 diabetes: exploring the role of the gut microbiome in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL)
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Women with a history of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have an elevated risk of type 2 diabetes in their later life, yet the underlying mechanisms of this remain unclear. We aimed to investigate the long-term impact of GDM on gut microbiota and related metabolites and to explore whether such alterations may contribute to type 2 diabetes risk. METHODS: Among parous women from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL), we identified microbial species associated with a history of GDM (visit 2, 2014-2017, n=1525), and serum metabolites associated with both a history of GDM (visit 1, 2008-2011, n=2968) and GDM-related microbiota (visit 2, n=391). We further examined prospective associations of the GDM-related microbiome (visit 2, n=925) with incident type 2 diabetes over 6 years of follow-up, and of microbial-related metabolites (visit 1, n=2341) with incident type 2 diabetes over 12 years. RESULTS: Among 1525 US Hispanic/Latino parous women (median age: 58 years), seven species differed between women with and without a history of GDM, including higher abundances of four species (e.g. Parabacteroides merdae CAG:48, a proinflammatory taxon) and lower abundances of three species (e.g. Dialister sp. CAG:588, a short-chain fatty acid producer). Fifteen metabolites were associated with both a history of GDM and the GDM-related microbiome in a consistent direction, nine of which (e.g. saturated sphingomyelins and unsaturated fatty acids) were associated with glycaemic traits and incident type 2 diabetes. Using these microbial-related metabolites as proxy measures, proxy analysis suggested a positive relationship between the GDM-related microbiome and type 2 diabetes (r=0.55, p=0.036). A metabolite score derived from the nine microbial-related metabolites mediated an estimated 20% (95% CI 9%, 42%) of the association between a history of GDM and type 2 diabetes. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: A history of GDM is associated with an unfavourable gut microbiota and related metabolites in US Hispanic/Latino women, suggesting a potential role of the gut microbiota in GDM-related type 2 diabetes.
Source: Diabetologia
Institutions: Albert Einstein College of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Florida Health, University of Florida, Harvard University, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, University of Illinois Chicago, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Fred Hutch Cancer Center
Language: English
Topic: Gut microbiota and health
Subfield: Molecular Biology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,490
Funders: American Diabetes Association, Office of Dietary Supplements, American Heart Association, University of Miami, Northwestern University, San Diego State University, National Institutes of Health, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Awards: G1937633654, G365023654, Gestational diabetes and risk of type 2 diabetes: exploring the role of gut microbiome and blood metabolome in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL), Epidemiology of the gut microbiome, prediabetes and diabetes in Latinos, Immunophenotyping for precision medicine for cardiovascular disease in people living with HIV, Integrated analysis of CVD risk in HIV: gut microbiota, immune function and metabolites, Menopause and hormonal influences on the gut microbiome for CVD risk in HIV, Louisiana Clinical and Translational Science Center, Biomarker of Pancreatic B-cell Loss Predicting Progression to Type 2 Diabetes After Gestational Diabetes
OpenAlex ID: W7159594883