{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,14]],"date-time":"2026-09-14T15:03:21Z","timestamp":1789398201327,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":51,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,3,21]],"date-time":"2025-03-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1742515200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Immunol."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Dietary Index of Gut Microbiota (DI-GM) is a newly proposed comprehensive metric for assessing dietary quality in relation to gut microbiota composition. Alterations in muscle structure are closely linked to DNA methylation-based biological age assessments and individual dietary patterns. However, a systematic investigation of the interrelationships among DI-GM, biological age, and sarcopenia remains lacking. We hypothesize that consuming foods beneficial to the gut microbiota may help mitigate the risk of sarcopenia by slowing the aging process.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This study analyzed data from NHANES 2007\u20132018. DI-GM was calculated using two 24-hour dietary recall datasets. Sarcopenia was assessed via dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). The association between DI-GM and sarcopenia was evaluated using multivariate logistic regression, subgroup analysis, and restricted cubic splines. This study also investigated the potential mediating effects of three biological age indicators: the Klemera-Doubal Method (KDM), PhenoAge, and Homeostatic Dysregulation (HD).<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>An increase in DI-GM score was significantly associated with a reduced risk of sarcopenia (OR: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.82\u20130.94).The risk of sarcopenia was significantly lower in the highest quartile group (Q3) (OR: 0.25, 95% CI: 0.11\u20130.58). The three biological age-related indicators (KDM, PA, and HD) partially mediated the association between DI-GM and sarcopenia, with PhenoAge showing the highest mediation proportion at 30.6%.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A higher DI-GM score was significantly associated with a reduced risk of sarcopenia. PhenoAge, HD, and KDM demonstrated significant mediating effects, with PhenoAge showing the highest mediation proportion.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fimmu.2025.1552525","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,3,21]],"date-time":"2025-03-21T04:19:06Z","timestamp":1742530746000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":10,"title":["The mediating role of biological age in the association between dietary index for gut microbiota and 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