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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #375780
Research Project: Molecular Approaches to Control Intestinal Parasites that Affect the Microbiome in Swine and Small Ruminants

Location: Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory

Title: Molecular and microbial signatures predictive of prebiotic action of neoagarotetraose in a dextran sulfate sodium-induced murine colitis model

Author
item LIU, FANG - Ocean University Of China
item LIU, JIANAN - University Of Maryland
item Wang, Thomas - Tom
item CHANGHU, XUE - Ocean University Of China
item ZIANGZHAO, MAO - Ocean University Of China
item QINGJUAN, TANG - Ocean University Of China
item Li, Robert

Submitted to: Microorganisms
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/30/2020
Publication Date: 7/3/2020
Citation: Liu, F., Liu, J., Wang, T.T., Changhu, X., Ziangzhao, M., Qingjuan, T., Li, R.W. 2020. Molecular and microbial signatures predictive of prebiotic action of neoagarotetraose in a dextran sulfate sodium-induced murine colitis model. Microorganisms. 8(7):995. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8070995.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8070995

Interpretive Summary: Natural oligosaccharides are known to possess bioactive properties, such as inhibiting bacterial growth and stimulating immune cells. Neoagarotetraose (NT) is one of such carbohydrate molecules derived from the hydrolytic process of agar. NT has been shown to inhibit inflammation and increase beneficial bacteria such as Bifidobacterium. However, its mechanistic action remains unclear. In this study, we evaluated the effect of NT in restoring microbial dysbiosis and alleviating dysregulated metabolome using a colitis model. Our results unraveled its intestinal protective mechanisms and should help the development of NT as a safe, potent, and inexpensive prebiotic for the management of colitis in animals and humans.

Technical Abstract: Neoagarotetraose (NT), a hydrolytic product of agar by ß-agarase, is known to possess bioactive properties. However, the mechanisms via which NT alleviates intestinal inflammation remain elusive. In this study, a dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) induced murine model was developed to evaluate the effect of NT on gut microbiome and microbial metabolism using 16S rRNA gene sequencing and untargeted metabolomics. Our data demonstrate that NT ingestion improved gut integrity, ulcers and inflammation scores. NT partially restored DSS-induced gut dysbiosis. NT reversed the abundance of Proteobacteria from an elevated level induced by DSS and significantly increased the abundance of Verrucomicrobia. Further, NT significantly increased the abundance of Akkermansia and Lactobacillus and concomitantly decreased that of Sutterella, which were among the important features identified by random forests analysis contributing to classification accuracy for NT supplementation. A microbial signature consisting of Adlercreutzia (denominator) and Turicibacter (Numerator) accurately predicted the NT supplementation status. Moreover, NT significantly modulated multiple gut metabolites, particularly those related to histidine, polyamine and tocopherol metabolism. Together, our findings provided novel insights into the mechanisms by which NT modulated the gut microbiome and metabolome and should facilitate the development of NT as a potent prebiotic for colitis management.