Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34938153›Full record

ReviewFrontiers in neuroscience2021

Gut Microbiome, Inflammation, and Cerebrovascular Function: Link Between Obesity and Cognition.

Lisette Olsthoorn, Debby Vreeken, Amanda J Kiliaan

Open access · goldAbstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Frontiers in neuroscience, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
22citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.5field-weighted citation impact, top 17% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

22 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 33 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Observational
  7. Article
  8. Obesity, Hypertension and Brain Health.Current hypertension reports · 2025
    Review
  9. Review
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Article
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Review
  17. Editorial: Surgical Weight Loss and Cognition in Obesity.The journal of nutrition, health & aging · 2023
    Article
  18. The Impact of Intermittent Hypoxia on Metabolism and Cognition.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022
    Review
  19. Review
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Lisette OlsthoornDepartment of Medical Imaging, Anatomy, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behavior, Nijmegen, Netherlands.
Debby VreekenDepartment of Medical Imaging, Anatomy, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behavior, Nijmegen, Netherlands.
Amanda J KiliaanDepartment of Medical Imaging, Anatomy, Radboud University Medical Center, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behavior, Nijmegen, Netherlands.
Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Obesity affects 13% of the adult population worldwide and this number is only expected to increase. Obesity is known to have a negative impact on cardiovascular and metabolic health, but it also impacts brain structure and function; it is associated with both gray and white matter integrity loss, as well as decreased cognitive function, including the domains of executive function, memory, inhibition, and language. Especially midlife obesity is associated with both cognitive impairment and an increased risk of developing dementia at later age. However, underlying mechanisms are not yet fully revealed. Here, we review recent literature (published between 2010 and March 2021) and discuss the effects of obesity on brain structure and cognition, with a main focus on the contributions of the gut microbiome, white adipose tissue (WAT), inflammation, and cerebrovascular function. Obesity-associated changes in gut microbiota composition may cause increased gut permeability and inflammation, therewith affecting cognitive function. Moreover, excess of WAT in obesity produces pro-inflammatory adipokines, leading to a low grade systemic peripheral inflammation, which is associated with decreased cognition. The blood-brain barrier also shows increased permeability, allowing among others, peripheral pro-inflammatory markers to access the brain, leading to neuroinflammation, especially in the hypothalamus, hippocampus and amygdala. Altogether, the interaction between the gut microbiota, WAT inflammation, and cerebrovascular integrity plays a significant role in the link between obesity and cognition. Future research should focus more on the interplay between gut microbiota, WAT, inflammation and cerebrovascular function to obtain a better understanding about the complex link between obesity and cognitive function in order to develop preventatives and personalized treatments.

Indexed as

brain structure and functioncerebrovascular functioncognitiongut microbiomeinflammationobesity

Identifiers

PMID34938153
PMCPMC8685335
OpenAlexW4200254925

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.