Morin attenuates high-fat diet induced inflammation and enhances the Akkermansiaceae richness in the gut of C57BL/6J mice

Obesity is a complex metabolic disorder associated with chronic low-grade inflammation and gut microbiota
dysbiosis. This study evaluated the therapeutic effects of morin, a natural flavonoid, in mitigating inflammation
and metabolic disturbances induced by a high-fat diet in male C57BL/6 mice. Mice were fed either a control diet
or high-fat diet for 16 weeks, and after obesity was induced, a subset of high-fat diet fed mice received morin via oral gavage at a dose of 100 mg/kg body weight for an additional 8 weeks. Gut microbiota diversity and
composition were assessed by bacterial 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing while colonic tissue was subjected to
histopathological staining. Pro-inflammatory gene and cytokine expression were quantified by real-time PCR and
ELISA methods. Morin treatment significantly enhanced the abundance of beneficial bacterial taxa, especially
Akkermansiaceae, and reduced the prevalence of potentially harmful taxa. Histological evaluation showed that
morin attenuated high-fat diet induced colonic hyperplasia and preserved colonic integrity. Moreover, morin
administration reduced the expression of key pro-inflammatory genes and cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-6, and
increased the anti-inflammatory cytokine, IL-10 in the colon tissue. These findings suggest that morin mitigated
high-fat diet induced inflammation by modulating gut microbiota composition thereby reducing colonic
inflammation, thereby highlighting its potential as a therapeutic candidate for obesity-related metabolic disor­
ders and warranting further clinical investigation.