The gut microbiome plays a key role in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease through systemic inflammation, impaired lipid metabolism, and proatherogenic gut metabolites like trimethylamine N-oxide. Gut dysbiosis contributes to decreased level of microbial metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids, bile acids, coprostanol, and phenylacetylglutamine, as well as increased intestinal permeability and platelet hyper-reactivity, and exacerbating cardiovascular risk. New microbiome-focused treatments such as probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation are showing potential to help reduce cardiovascular diseases. However, bringing these therapies into clinical settings is difficult because they vary by strain and individual response. The gut–heart connection offers an innovative approach to preventing and treating heart condition, but additional research is needed to ensure lasting effectiveness and safety.
Hijová et al. (2026) studied this question.