Therapeutic perspectives of intestinal probiotics A. muciniphila in metabolic disorders

Akkermansia muciniphila (A. muciniphila) is an intestinal bacterium that was isolated from human feces in 2004. Its specialization in mucin degradation makes it a key organism that maintains the intestinal mucosal barrier function. A. muciniphila, which is the only representative of the Verrucomicrobia that can be cultured, is relatively easy to be detected in metagenomic analysis. For the past few years, A. muciniphila has quickly attracted the attention of researchers and become a medical and biological hotspot due to the close correlation between its intestinal colonization and the development and progression of various metabolic diseases. This review introduces the biological characteristics and colonization environment of A. muciniphila, and reviews its relationship with host health and disease, especially focusing on the metabolic disease and related mechanism, as well as the factors affecting its colonization in the host, expecting to provide evidence and clues for drug development targeting A. muciniphila.