gut-microbiota
Gut microbiota comprise the diverse microbial communities residing in animal digestive systems that profoundly affect their host's nutrient metabolism, disease resistance, and physiological function. For plant science, this concept extends to understanding the microbiota inhabiting plant tissues and the rhizosphere—the root zone where plant-microbe interactions similarly enhance nutrient acquisition, pathogen suppression, and plant health. Studying microbiota across diverse organisms, from animals to plants, reveals universal principles of how microbial partnerships drive organismal function and ecosystem productivity.
open_in_new WikipediaPubMed · 2026-02-18
Researchers found that a polyphenol-rich extract from coffee leaves protected mice from the harmful effects of a high-fat diet, including gut damage, liver fat buildup, and systemic inflammation. The findings suggest that coffee leaves — typically discarded as agricultural waste — contain potent bioactive compounds with significant health-protective properties.
Coffee leaf extract at 100–200 mg/kg body weight reduced body weight and lowered TNF-α (an inflammation marker) in the blood, colon, liver, and brain of high-fat-diet mice.
The extract strengthened the gut barrier by increasing tight-junction proteins and reducing intestinal leakage of d-lactic acid, a sign of gut damage.
Liver histology showed reduced fat accumulation and cell injury, alongside decreased triglycerides, total cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol levels.
