Introduction: Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) is a highly prevalent microvascular complication of the eyes in diabetic patients, which can lead to vision deterioration and even blindness. Coreopsis tinctoria Nutt. (CT) has the effect of clearing heat and detoxifying and can be used to treat red eye, swelling, and pain. Studies have shown that CT can treat DR. Based on the "guteye axis" theory, this study explored the mechanism of CT intervention in DR from the perspective of gut microbiota. Methods: To generate a DR rat model, SD rats were given a high-fat diet and an injection of streptozocin. The CT treatment was examined using microbial sequencing, bioinformatics, and fecal metabolomics methods. The results were confirmed using lipidomics. Results: Bioinformatics predicted inflammation targets and pathways in DR rats. CT changed gut microbiota composition and abundance, affecting lipid metabolism. Fecal metabolomics revealed that the differential metabolites are mostly lipid compounds, and CT could improve the metabolic imbalance of glycerol phospholipids and sphingolipids in DR rats. Conclusion: Coreopsis tinctoria Nutt. plays a role in the therapy of DR by modifying the composition of the gut microbiota and affecting lipid metabolism.
Zhang et al. (2026) studied this question.