scholarly journals The Protective Effects of a Modified Xiaohua Funing Decoction against Acute Liver Failure in Mice Induced by D-Gal and LPS

2022 ◽  
Vol 2022 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Jindong Zhao ◽  
Lili Liu ◽  
Ling Xin ◽  
Yunxia Lu ◽  
Xiaojun Yang ◽  
...  

Objective. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a modified Xiaohua Funing decoction (Xfd) on acute liver failure (ALF) and determine whether the protective mechanisms are related to alterations in the gut microbiota. Methods. An animal model of ALF was induced by intraperitoneal injection of D-galactosamine (D-Gal, 0.5 g/kg) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 100 μg/kg). Male BALB/c mice were randomly divided into the following 4 groups: the control group (saline, Con), model group (D-Gal/LPS, Mod), silymarin pretreatment group (200 mg/kg, Sil), and modified Xfd pretreatment group (650 mg/kg, Xfd). The Sil and Xfd groups received the respective intervention orally for 14 days and 2 h before D-Gal/LPS treatment. The liver injury markers included alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels and liver histology. 16S rRNA gene sequencing was performed to assess the effects on the caecum content. Results. D-Gal/LPS treatment caused severe ALF, illustrating that the ALF model was successfully established. The administration of Sil and Xfd greatly reduced the serum ALT and AST levels and improved the pathological signs of liver injury. However, no significant difference was found between the two groups. In contrast to the Mod group, the Sil and Xfd groups showed a shift toward the Con group in terms of the gut microbiota structure. The abundances of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes and the Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratio in the Mod group significantly differed from those in the Con group. The Sil and Xfd groups showed restoration of the disordered microbiota. Significantly increased relative abundances of Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group and Candidatus_Saccharimonas and a markedly decreased Muribaculaceae abundance were found in the Sil and Xfd mice compared with those in the Mod mice ( P < 0.01 , P < 0.05 ). Interestingly, a negative correlation was observed between the abundances of the gut microbiota constituents, specifically Clostridia_UCG-014, and ALT and AST levels. Conclusion. In summary, our results indicate that Xfd may protect the liver and modify the gut microbiota in ALF mice.

Life ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 254
Author(s):  
Ying Wang ◽  
Jianqing Zhu ◽  
Jie Fang ◽  
Li Shen ◽  
Shuojia Ma ◽  
...  

We characterized the gut microbial composition and relative abundance of gut bacteria in the larvae and adults of Pieris canidia by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The gut microbiota structure was similar across the life stages and sexes. The comparative functional analysis on P. canidia bacterial communities with PICRUSt showed the enrichment of several pathways including those for energy metabolism, immune system, digestive system, xenobiotics biodegradation, transport, cell growth and death. The parameters often used as a proxy of insect fitness (development time, pupation rate, emergence rate, adult survival rate and weight of 5th instars larvae) showed a significant difference between treatment group and untreated group and point to potential fitness advantages with the gut microbiomes in P. canidia. These data provide an overall view of the bacterial community across the life stages and sexes in P. canidia.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pei-Qin Cao ◽  
Xiu-Ping Li ◽  
Jian Ou-Yang ◽  
Rong-Gang Jiang ◽  
Fang-Fang Huang ◽  
...  

We evaluated the effects of yellow tea extract on relieving constipation induced by loperamide and evaluated the changes of gut microbiota based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yue Hu ◽  
Fang Chen ◽  
Haiyong Ye ◽  
Bin Lu

AbstractStress is one of the major causes of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which is well-known for perturbing the microbiome and exacerbating IBS-associated symptoms. However, changes in the gut microbiome and metabolome in response to colorectal distention (CRD), combined with restraint stress (RS) administration, remains unclear. In this study, CRD and RS stress were used to construct an IBS rat model. The 16S rRNA gene sequencing was used to characterize the microbiota in ileocecal contents. UHPLC-QTOF-MS/MS assay was used to characterize the metabolome of gut microbiota. As a result, significant gut microbial dysbiosis was observed in stress-induced IBS rats, with the obvious enrichment of three and depletion of 11 bacterial taxa in IBS rats, when compared with those in the control group (q < 0.05). Meanwhile, distinct changes in the fecal metabolic phenotype of stress-induced IBS rats were also found, including five increased and 19 decreased metabolites. Furthermore, phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis were the main metabolic pathways induced by IBS stress. Moreover, the altered gut microbiota had a strong correlation with the changes in metabolism of stress-induced IBS rats. Prevotella bacteria are correlated with the metabolism of 1-Naphthol and Arg.Thr. In conclusion, the gut microbiome, metabolome and their interaction were altered. This may be critical for the development of stress-induced IBS.


Author(s):  
Shiju Xiao ◽  
Guangzhong Zhang ◽  
Chunyan Jiang ◽  
Xin Liu ◽  
Xiaoxu Wang ◽  
...  

BackgroundIncreasing evidence has shown that alterations in the intestinal microbiota play an important role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. The existing relevant studies focus on 16S rRNA gene sequencing, but in-depth research on gene functions and comprehensive identification of microbiota is lacking.ObjectivesTo comprehensively identify characteristic gut microbial compositions, genetic functions and relative metabolites of patients with psoriasis and to reveal the potential pathogenesis of psoriasis.MethodsDNA was extracted from the faecal microbiota of 30 psoriatic patients and 15 healthy subjects, and metagenomics sequencing and bioinformatic analyses were performed. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) database, cluster of orthologous groups (COG) annotations, and metabolic analyses were used to indicate relative target genes and pathways to reveal the pathogenesis of psoriasis.ResultsCompared with healthy individuals, the gut microbiota of psoriasis patients displayed an alteration in microbial taxa distribution, but no significant difference in microbial diversity. A distinct gut microbial composition in patients with psoriasis was observed, with an increased abundance of the phyla Firmicutes, Actinobacteria and Verrucomicrobia and genera Faecalibacterium, Bacteroides, Bifidobacterium, Megamonas and Roseburia and a decreased abundance of the phyla Bacteroidetes, Euryarchaeota and Proteobacteria and genera Prevotella, Alistipes, and Eubacterium. A total of 134 COGs were predicted with functional analysis, and 15 KEGG pathways, including lipopolysaccharide (LPS) biosynthesis, WNT signaling, apoptosis, bacterial secretion system, and phosphotransferase system, were significantly enriched in psoriasis patients. Five metabolites, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), isovalerate, isobutyrate, hyaluronan and hemicellulose, were significantly dysregulated in the psoriatic cohort. The dysbiosis of gut microbiota, enriched pathways and dysregulated metabolites are relevant to immune and inflammatory response, apoptosis, the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling pathway, gut-brain axis and brain-skin axis that play important roles in the pathogenesis of psoriasis.ConclusionsA clear dysbiosis was displayed in the gut microbiota profile, genetic functions and relative metabolites of psoriasis patients. This study is beneficial for further understanding the inflammatory pathogenesis of psoriasis and could be used to develop microbiome-based predictions and therapeutic approaches.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayako Horigome ◽  
Ken Hisata ◽  
Toshitaka Odamaki ◽  
Noriyuki Iwabuchi ◽  
Jin-zhong Xiao ◽  
...  

The colonization and persistence of probiotics introduced into the adult human gut appears to be limited. It is uncertain, however, whether probiotics can successfully colonize the intestinal tracts of full-term and premature infants. In this study, we investigated the colonization and the effect of oral supplementation with Bifidobacterium breve M-16V on the gut microbiota of low birth weight (LBW) infants. A total of 22 LBW infants (12 infants in the M-16V group and 10 infants in the control group) were enrolled. B. breve M-16V was administrated to LBW infants in the M-16V group from birth until hospital discharge. Fecal samples were collected from each subject at weeks (3.7–9.3 weeks in the M-16V group and 2.1–6.1 weeks in the control group) after discharge. qPCR analysis showed that the administrated strain was detected in 83.3% of fecal samples in the M-16V group (at log10 8.33 ± 0.99 cell numbers per gram of wet feces), suggesting that this strain colonized most of the infants beyond several weeks post-administration. Fecal microbiota analysis by 16S rRNA gene sequencing showed that the abundance of Actinobacteria was significantly higher (P &lt; 0.01), whereas that of Proteobacteria was significantly lower (P &lt; 0.001) in the M-16V group as compared with the control group. Notably, the levels of the administrated strain and indigenous Bifidobacterium bacteria were both significantly higher in the M-16V group than in the control group. Our findings suggest that oral administration of B. breve M-16V led to engraftment for at least several weeks post-administration and we observed a potential overall improvement in microbiota formation in the LBW infants’ guts.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (10) ◽  
pp. e0258489
Author(s):  
Li Ying ◽  
Yunjia Yang ◽  
Jun Zhou ◽  
Hairong Huang ◽  
Guankui Du

Betel nut chewing (BNC) is prevalent in South Asia and Southeast Asia. BNC can affect host health by modulating the gut microbiota. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of BNC on the gut microbiota of the host. Feces samples were obtained from 34 BNC individuals from Ledong and Lingshui, Hainan, China. The microbiota was analyzed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. BNC decreased the microbial α-diversity. Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, and Proteobacteria were the predominant phyla, accounting for 99.35% of the BNC group. The Firmicutes-to-Bacteroidetes ratio was significantly increased in the BNC group compared to a control group. The abundances of the families Aerococcaceae, Neisseriaceae, Moraxellaceae, Porphyromonadaceae, and Planococcaceae were decreased in the BNC/BNC_Male/BNC_Female groups compared to the control group, whereas the abundances of Coriobacteriaceae, Streptococcaceae, Micrococcaceae, Xanthomonadaceae, Coxiellaceae, Nocardioidaceae, Rhodobacteraceae, and Succinivibrionaceae were increased. In general, the gut microbiome profiles suggest that BNC may have positive effects, such as an increase in the abundance of beneficial microbes and a reduction in the abundance of disease-related microbes. However, BNC may also produce an increase in the abundance of disease-related microbes. Therefore, extraction of prebiotic components could increase the beneficial value of betel nut.


Author(s):  
AA Masyutina ◽  
LN Gumenyuk ◽  
YuV Fatovenko ◽  
LE Sorokina ◽  
SS Bayramova ◽  
...  

The relationship between the gut microbiota and chronic insomnia remains understudied. The aim of this paper was to investigate changes in the taxonomic composition of the gut microbiota and their associations with the levels of cortisol, melatonin and IL6 in patients with chronic insomnia. Our comparative prospective cross-sectional study enrolled 55 patients with chronic insomnia, who formed the main group (female patients: 58.2%, male patients: 41.8%; mean age 31.6 ± 7.4 years), and 50 healthy volunteers, who comprised the control group (females: 68.0%, males: 32.0%; mean age 33.2 ± 6.6 years). The taxonomic composition of the gut microbiota was profiled using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Plasma cortisol and IL 6 and urine melatonin were measured by means of ELISA. Sleep quality was evaluated using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). In patients with chronic insomnia, the abundance of Faecalibacterium (p = 0.048), Prevotella 9 (p < 0.001) and Lachnospira (p = 0.036) was lower, whereas the abundance of Blautia (p = 0.012) and Eubacteriumhallii (p = 0.003) was higher than in healthy volunteers. Significant correlations were established between the levels of IL6 and the abundance of Faecalibacterium (r = –0.44; p = 0.001) and Blautia (r = 0.42; p < 0.001), as well as between cortisol concentrations and the abundance of Lachnospira (r = –0.41; p = 0.048). The abundance of Faecalibacterium and Blautiaс was correlated with higher PSQI (r = –0.47, p = 0.001; r = 0.45, p < 0.001, respectively). Our study contributed to the pool of data about changes in the gut microbiota and their associations with some endocrine and inflammation markers in patients with chronic insomnia. These data can be exploited to propose new strategies for the diagnosis and personalized treatment of insomnia aimed at normalizing the patient’s gut microbiota.


mSphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaicen Wang ◽  
Longxian Lv ◽  
Ren Yan ◽  
Qiangqiang Wang ◽  
Huiyong Jiang ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Acute liver failure is a severe liver disorder that poses considerable global challenges. Previous studies on Bifidobacterium longum R0175 have mainly focused on its psychotropic functions. The current research focused on the protective efficacy of B. longum R0175 against acute liver failure caused by d-galactosamine (d-GalN) in rats and further tested the hypothesis that B. longum R0175 exerted liver-protective effects by affecting the intestinal microbiota and fecal metabolites and by inhibiting inflammation. We found that oral gavage of B. longum R0175 markedly reduced the severity of liver injury in d-GalN-treated rats, as evidenced by decreased serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and total bile acids (TBAs) (P < 0.05). Moreover, the plasma concentrations of proinflammatory cytokines (interleukin 1β [IL-1β] and tumor necrosis factor-α [TNF-α]) and chemokines (granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor [GM-CSF], macrophage chemoattractant protein 1 [MCP-1], chemokine [C-X-C motif] ligand 1 [CXCL1], chemokine [C-C motif] ligand 5 [CCL5], and macrophage inflammatory protein-1α [MIP-1α]) were also markedly reduced (P < 0.05). Pretreatment with B. longum R0175 partially reversed the gut microbiota dysbiosis in rats with liver injury by increasing the relative abundances of potentially beneficial bacteria, such as Alloprevotella spp., and decreasing the relative abundances of potentially harmful bacteria, such as Acetatifactor muris, Butyricimonas spp., and Oscillibacter spp. Furthermore, B. longum R0175 administration partially improved the metabolic function of the intestinal microbes, as indicated by the decreased level of lithocholic acid found in the feces. IMPORTANCE Our research investigated the protective and preventive roles of B. longum R0175 in a rat model of acute liver failure. The results illustrated that this probiotic strain exhibited protective effects in rats with acute liver failure. Thus, B. longum R0175 showed clinical application prospects that required further exploration.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin B. Guevarra ◽  
Jae Hyoung Cho ◽  
Jin Ho Cho ◽  
Minho Song ◽  
Jun Hyung Lee ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Development of alternatives to in-feed antibiotics in the swine industry have been the focused of many pig gut microbiota studies to improve animal health. In this study, we evaluated the effects of probiotic Pediococcus acidilactici (PRO), prebiotic lactulose (PRE), and their synbiotic combination (SYN) on weaned pig gut microbiota using 16S rRNA gene sequencing in weaned piglets challenged with Shiga-toxin producing Escherichia coli (STEC). Results: Our data showed that prebiotics, probiotics and synbiotics improved the intestinal health in weaned piglets. No significant differences were observed in species richness and species diversity in weaned piglets fed prebiotics, probiotics and their synbiotic combination. However, beta diversity analysis revealed distinct clustering of the microbiota of according to dietary treatment and by oral challenge of STEC. At the phylum level, Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes ratio was lower in the dietary treatment groups than the control group. Oral supplementation of prebiotics, probiotics and synbiotics enriched the abundance of Prevotella and Roseburia. Succinivibrio was elevated in PRO group; however, Phascolarctobacterium was depleted with STEC challenge regardless of dietary treatment. Overall, our data showed that administration of synbiotics in piglets improved intestinal health through gut microbiota modulation. Conclusions: Our data indicated that prebiotics, probiotics and their synbiotic combination could promote intestinal health through gut microbiota modulation in weaned piglets.


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