Anti-Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Hepatic Steatosis Effects of Pickering Emulsion-Encapsulated Curcumin via Gut Microbiota and Short-Chain Fatty Acids Modulation in High-Fat-Diet Mice

With lipid metabolism disorders becoming a global health issue, designing safe and effective prevention methods is crucial. Curcumin, a natural polyphenol compound, exhibits the ability to ameliorate lipid metabolism disorders. However, the bioavailability of curcumin is low, primarily due to its poor solubility, susceptibility to degradation, low absorption, and rapid metabolism. The bioavailability of curcumin is markedly enhanced when it is encapsulated within Pickering emulsions. This study investigated the ameliorative effect of curcumin encapsulated in Pickering emulsions on high-fat-diet-induced lipid metabolism disorders. We demonstrated that curcumin encapsulated in Pickering emulsions substantially prevented high-fat-diet-induced body gain, alleviated glucose intolerance, mitigated insulin resistance, and improved hepatic steatosis. Curcumin encapsulated in Pickering emulsions induced gut microbiota remodeling, characterized by an increased relative abundance of Bacteroidetes and a decreased relative abundance of Firmicutes. In particular, the relative abundance of <i>Akkermansia</i> was significantly increased. The changes in the gut microbiota of mice fed a high-fat diet, curcumin, or curcumin encapsulated in Pickering emulsions mice were correlated with lipid-related parameters in serum (triglycerides, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol) and the generation of short-chain fatty acids. These findings indicated the basis of curcumin's effects by modulating gut microbiota-short-chain fatty acids, offering valuable perspectives for developing it as a potential functional food component aimed at preventing and mitigating metabolic dysfunction-associated hepatic steatosis.