Paecilomyces cicadae-fermented Radix astragali ameliorate diabetic nephropathy in mice by modulating the gut microbiota

The occurrence and development of diabetic nephropathy (DN) are closely related to gut microbiota. Paecilomyces cicadae is a medicinal and edible fungus. Radix astragali is a therapeutic material for unifying Chinese Qi. They can delay the occurrence and development of kidney disease. In recent years, solid-state fermentation of edible fungi and traditional Chinese medicine has become a hot issue.Hypothesis/Gap Statement. We assumed that solid-state fermentation products of R. astragali and Paecilomyces cicadidae (RPF) could ameliorate diabetic nephropathy and modulate gut microbiota composition. We aimed to study the function and mechanism of the RPF for ameliorating DN in mice. We investigated the effect of the potential roles of RPF in DN mice and interaction between DN and gut microbiota using animal experiments and gut microbiota measurements. We found that RPF dramatically reduced urine protein, serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen in DN mice. Furthermore, RPF ameliorated the physiological condition of DN mice by regulating the abundance of intestinal microbiota such as Ruminococcaceae_UCG-014, Allobaculum, Unclassified_f__Lachnospiraceae Alloprevotella and Bacteroides. RPF can ameliorate diabetic nephropathy and modulate gut microbiota composition.