3.3.1 Effect of GP on the diversity of gut microbiota
The Shannon index is a key index used to evaluate microbial community diversity. Compared with the blank group, the Shannon index in the model group decreased significantly (P < 0.01). The Shannon index of the GP group was significantly higher than that of the model group (P < 0.05; Fig. 3A). The results showed that the microbiota diversity of the model group was lower than that of the normal rats, but GP could restore the microbiota diversity.