Researchers affiliated with Nanchang University report that pasteurized (postbiotic) Akkermansia muciniphila may offer reduce testosterone levels, improve the profile of the gut microbiota, and improve insulin resistance and dyslipidemia in PMOS, when used in combination with standardized oral contraceptive therapy.
PMOS is characterized by excess male hormones (hyperandrogenism), irregular ovulation and polycystic ovarian changes. It is one of the most prevalent endocrine-metabolic conditions in reproductive-aged women. The name was changed from Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) earlier this year to reflect the condition’s broader hormonal and metabolic impacts beyond the ovaries.
“Through mitigating the limitations of conventional therapies targeting metabolism and hormonal balance, this strategy [combining Akkermansia with oral contraceptive therapy] offers a reliable and effective approach to treating obese patients with PMOS in clinical settings,” wrote the researchers in Clinical Nutrition.
“Furthermore, these findings provide critical evidence and data support for the translational application and industrial development of AKK PROBIO postbiotics.”
Akkermansia
Akkermansia muciniphila is a Gram-negative, anaerobic bacterium that colonizes the gut during the first year of life. The bug reportedly accounts for about 3% of the human gut microbiota, and its abundance in the intestinal mucus layer is inversely correlated with BMI, type 1 diabetes and bowel disease in humans.
Akkermansia is known to produce nutrients that feed intestinal cells responsible for producing the intestinal mucus layer, which helps to maintain healthy intestinal barrier function and controls gut permeability and low-grade inflammation in the gut.
In the dietary supplement category, Akkermansia muciniphila is mostly associated with weight management, but the new study highlights that the species’ metabolic effects may extend its benefits to PMOS.
Probiota focus on PMOS
The impact of the gut microbiome on women's health, and PMOS in particular, will be the focus of a dedicated session at Probiota in Berlin (9-11 February, 2027). The session will examine how probiotics, prebiotics, and postbiotics may support metabolic, hormonal, and reproductive health. For more information and to register, CLICK HERE.
Study details
One hundred women with obesity-associated PMOS receiving standardized oral contraceptive therapy were randomly assigned to receive either placebo or postbiotic A. muciniphila supplements (10 billion CFU equivalents per day) for 12 weeks.
The results showed that women in the Akkermansia group lost an average of 1.9 kg over 12 weeks, compared to only 0.4 kg in the placebo group. In addition, the postbiotic group also displayed less effects relating to hyperandrogenism, including hirsutism (the growth of thick, dark hair on the face, chest, or back) and acne, compared to placebo.
Improvements in glucose–insulin homeostasis, dyslipidemia, and testosterone levels were also recorded for the Akkermansia group, compared to placebo.
Analysis of the gut microbiota showed that Akkermansia consumption was also associated with favorable shifts in the diversity and abundance of beneficial bacteria groups, including increases in Bifidobacterium and Faecalibacterium and decreases in Bacteroides and Fusobacterium.
“Taken together, this study provides the first clinical evidence that adjunctive [Akkermansia] postbiotic supplementation combined with standard oral contraceptive therapy may further improve metabolic and endocrine abnormalities in women with obesity-associated PMOS, thus establishing a promising therapeutic strategy for PMOS and laying a robust foundation for the future clinical translation of [Akkermansia],” wrote the researchers.
Source: Clinical Nutrition, doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2026.106782. “Adjunctive Akkermansia muciniphila postbiotic supplementation modulates metabolic and endocrine profiles in obesity-associated polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome: a randomized controlled trial.” Authors: Qingwei Zeng, et al.
