Human milk is nutrient rich, complex in its composition, and is key to a baby's health through its role in nutrition, gastrointestinal tract and immune development. Seventy-eight mothers (19⁻42 years ...of age) of Asian, Māori, Pacific Island, or of European ethnicity living in Manawatu-Wanganui, New Zealand (NZ) completed the study. The women provided three breast milk samples over a one-week period (6⁻8 weeks postpartum), completed a three-day food diary and provided information regarding their pregnancy and lactation experiences. The breast milk samples were analyzed for protein, fat, fatty acid profile, ash, selected minerals (calcium, magnesium, selenium, zinc), and carbohydrates. Breast milk nutrient profiles showed no significant differences between the mothers of different ethnicities in their macronutrient (protein, fat, carbohydrate, and moisture) content. The breast milk of Asian mothers contained significantly higher levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), omega-3 (
-3) and omega-6 (
-6) fatty acids, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and linoleic acids. Arachidonic acid was significantly lower in the breast milk of Māori and Pacific Island women. Dietary intakes of protein, total energy, saturated and polyunsaturated fat, calcium, phosphorus, zinc, iodine, vitamin A equivalents, and folate differed between the ethnic groups, as well as the number of serves of dairy foods, chicken, and legumes. No strong correlations between dietary nutrients and breast milk components were found.
This study examined the effects of anthocyanin-rich blackcurrant extract and dietary fibers individually and their combinations on biomarkers of large intestinal health in rats. After six weeks of ...feeding, rats fed diets with blackcurrant gained significantly less body weight and reduced their food intake resulting in a lower food efficiency compared with those rats fed control diets. Combining dietary fiber (apple or broccoli) with blackcurrant in the diet was more effective in reducing the body weight gain and food intake. Cecal bacterial populations and short-chain fatty acids differed between the experimental diets. Blackcurrants significantly altered the bacterial populations by increasing the abundance of
Bacteroides-Prevotella-Porphyromonas
group and
Lactobacillus
spp., while decreasing the abundance of
Bifidobacterium
spp. and
Clostridium perfringens
. Propionic acid concentrations were increased by the diets with blackcurrant. Butyric acid concentrations were increased by dietary fiber supplementation. Dietary fiber increased the number of goblet cells in the colon. Diets with blackcurrant were more effective in altering the biomarkers of large intestinal health than those without blackcurrant.
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•Basal starch and quasi human diets produced different gut microbiota compositions.•Effects of dietary fibre sources on gut microbiota depended on background diet.•The quasi human ...diet produced more hydrated faecal bulk than basal starch diet.•Human background diets confer microbiota studies with relevance to humans.
The effects of whole foods and food components on gut microbiota are often investigated in animal models not fed a human-type background diet. In this study, rats were fed basal starch (BS) or quasi human (QH) background diets either unsubstituted (controls) or substituted with inulin, dried kiwifruit or pectin for 28 days. Gut microbiota composition and hydrated faecal bulking potential of the diets were evaluated. In the caecum and colon, relative abundance of bacteria at the phylum, family or genus levels differed considerably between the background diets (BS and QH). Rats fed QH diets had higher Actinobacteria than those rats fed BS diets. Gut microbiota responses to inulin, kiwifruit and pectin depended on the background diet. QH diet led to twice the mass of hydrated faecal bulk than BS diet. Overall, simple laboratory animal diets are unlikely to provide valid predictions of effects of prebiotics added to human diets.
Abstract Objective Enteric microbiota has been shown to be associated with various pathological conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This study aimed to determine the ...anti-inflammatory colonic effects of blueberries and broccoli in mdr1a−/− mice (IBD mouse model) through modification of microbiota composition in the gastrointestinal tract. Methods The mdr1a−/− mice were fed either a control diet or the control diet supplemented with either 10% blueberry or broccoli for 21 wk. We investigated the influence of these diets on cecal microbiota and organic acids, colon morphology, and bacterial translocation to mesenteric lymph nodes. Results In comparison to mice fed the control diet, blueberry and broccoli supplementation altered cecum microbiota similarly with the exception of Faecalibacterium prausnitzii , which was found to be significantly lower in broccoli-fed mice. High concentrations of butyric acid and low concentrations of succinic acid were observed in the cecum of broccoli-fed mice. Blueberry- and broccoli-supplemented diets increased colon crypt size and the number of goblet cells per crypt. Only the broccoli-supplemented diet significantly lowered colonic inflammation compared to mice fed the control diet. Translocation of total microbes to mesenteric lymph nodes was lower in broccoli-fed mice compared to blueberry and control diet groups. Conclusion Dietary blueberries and/or broccoli altered the composition and metabolism of the cecal microbiota and colon morphology. Overall, these results warrant further investigation through clinical studies to establish whether the consumption of blueberries and/or broccoli is able to alter the composition and metabolism of large intestine microbiota and promote colon health in humans.
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•Kiwifruit soluble bacteria-free fermenta increased IL-7 secretion in HT-29 cells.•In the presence of IFNγ, gold and green kiwifruit differed in increasing IL-7 ...secretion.•Epithelial-derived IL-7 secretion and bifidobacteria DNA was positively correlated.
Intestinal immune tolerance is maintained through the interplay between commensal microbiota, immune cells and epithelium. Constitutive intestinal epithelial-secreted interleukin (IL)-7 facilitates the proliferation and thus maintenance of gamma-delta T lymphocytes, which preserves intestinal mucosal immune surveillance. Since IL-7 is essential for maintaining intestinal health, we hypothesised that microbiota-derived components influenced by dietary kiwifruit support the intestinal IL-7 expression. In vitro gastro-ileal digestion and colonic fermentation of gold and green kiwifruit generated soluble bacteria-free fermenta, notably bacterial DNA that modulated basal and interferon gamma-stimulated IL-7 secretion in HT-29 cells. Epithelial IL-7 secretion correlated positively with total bacterial DNA, and the DNA originated from bifidobacteria, which are known to contain immunostimulatory CpG motifs. These findings demonstrate the involvement of microbiota DNA in promoting IL-7 secretion in the intestinal epithelium and contribute to unravelling a mechanism by which kiwifruit serve to maintain intestinal immune homeostasis.
Colonic microbiota composition and metabolic processes were investigated after modifying the diet immediately post-weaning in rats. Three-week old Sprague–Dawley rats were fed cellulose or inulin ...diet for 0 day (d), 7 d or 14 d. Real-time PCR quantification showed significantly higher colonic Bifidobacterium spp. in rats fed inulin on d7 and d14. Inulin was effective in increasing the total bacteria, Bacteroides-Prevotella-Porphyromonas group and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, while decreasing Lactobacillus spp. Higher concentrations of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs: acetic, butyric and propionic acids), lactic acid and succinic acid were observed in inulin-fed rats. Inulin ingestion altered colonic mucin (MUC)-3 gene expression, and increased the colon crypt depth with more goblet cells per crypt. Significant positive correlations between SCFAs concentrations and MUC3 expression were observed. Dietary supplementation with inulin altered microbiota composition, and their fermentation end-products may have aided in modifying mucin gene expression and morphology in the colon of young rats.
Human breastmilk components, the microbiota and immune modulatory proteins have vital roles in infant gut and immune development. In a population of breastfeeding women (
= 78) of different ...ethnicities (Asian, Māori and Pacific Island, New Zealand European) and their infants living in the Manawatu-Wanganui region of New Zealand, we examined the microbiota and immune modulatory proteins in the breast milk, and the fecal microbiota of mothers and infants. Breast milk and fecal samples were collected over a one-week period during the six to eight weeks postpartum. Breast milk microbiota differed between the ethnic groups. However, these differences had no influence on the infant's gut microbiota composition. Based on the body mass index (BMI) classifications, the mother's breast milk and fecal microbiota compositions were similar between normal, overweight and obese individuals, and their infant's fecal microbiota composition also did not differ. The relative abundance of bacteria belonging to the
phylum was higher in feces of infants born through vaginal delivery. However, the bacterial abundance of this phylum in the mother's breast milk or feces was similar between women who delivered vaginally or by cesarean section. Several immune modulatory proteins including cytokines, growth factors, and immunoglobulin differed between the BMI and ethnicity groups. Transforming growth factor beta 1 and 2 (TGFβ1, TGFβ2) were present in higher concentrations in the milk from overweight mothers compared to those of normal weight. The TGFβ1 and soluble cluster of differentiation 14 (sCD14) concentrations were significantly higher in the breast milk from Māori and Pacific Island women compared with women from Asian and NZ European ethnicities. This study explores the relationship between ethnicity, body mass index, mode of baby delivery and the microbiota of infants and their mothers and their potential impact on infant health.
•Probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics differed in their effects on the biomarkers of large bowel health.•Rats fed L. rhamnosus HN001 gained less weight and had higher numbers of caecal ...Bifidobacterium spp. and Lachnospiraceae.•L. rhamnosus HN001, fructo-oligosaccharide, and all the synbiotic combinations enhanced mucin 4 gene expression.
The effects of probiotics (Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis HN019 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus HN001) and prebiotics (fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS), galacto-oligosaccharide (GOS), and inulin) individually and in synbiotic combinations (B. lactis HN019+FOS, B. lactis HN019+GOS, B. lactis HN019+inulin, L. rhamnosus HN001+FOS, L. rhamnosus HN001+GOS, and L. rhamnosus HN001+inulin) on large bowel health were investigated in rats fed the respective diets for 21 days. All experimental treatments led to significantly lower body weight gains and decreased caecal acetic acid concentrations compared to the control diet (no pro-, pre-, and synbiotics). Caecal Bifidobacterium spp. or Lachnospiraceae were increased in L. rhamnosus HN001, FOS or inulin treatments. Rats fed L. rhamnosus HN001 had enhanced colonic β-defensin 1 and mucin (MUC)-4 gene expression. All synbiotic combinations increased the MUC4 gene expression. The pro-, pre-, and synbiotics had beneficial effects on the biomarkers of large bowel health in rats. A selective inclusion of pro-, pre-, and synbiotics in the diet will be required to achieve desired health benefits.
The immunostimulatory effects of Lactobacillus acidophilus LAFTI L10 and Lactobacillus paracasei LAFTI L26 were evaluated to determine their probiotic properties for functional food applications. ...Mice were given oral doses of either L. acidophilus L10 or L. paracasei L26 (108 CFU/50 μl/day), and the effects on immune responses and bacterial translocation were assessed after the 14-day feeding trial. The proliferative responses of splenocytes to concanavalin A and lipopolysaccharide were significantly higher in mice fed L. acidophilus. Concanavalin A-induced splenocyte proliferative responses increased significantly in mice fed L. paracasei. Interleukin 10 and interferon γ production from the splenocytes stimulated with concanavalin A were enhanced in mice fed L. acidophilus or L. paracasei. The phagocytic activity of the peritoneal macrophages was significantly higher in mice fed either L. acidophilus or L. paracasei compared with control mice. In mice fed L. acidophilus or L. paracasei, the bacterial translocation of Lactobacillus spp. and total anaerobes to Peyer's patches and mesenteric lymph nodes was modulated compared with that in the control mice. Furthermore, there was no indication of disruption of intestinal mucosal integrity and thus no bacterial translocation to spleen, liver, or blood in mice fed either L. acidophilus or L. paracasei. The results of this study indicate that L. acidophilus and L. paracasei are potential enhancers of systemic immunity and are nonpathogenic, as suggested by their bacterial translocation profiles in healthy mice.
Consumption of polyphenols and dietary fiber as part of a normal diet is beneficial to human health. In this study, we examined whether different amounts of dietary soluble fiber (pectin) affect the ...absorption and metabolism of polyphenols from blackcurrant and green tea in rats. After 28 days, the rats fed blackcurrant and green tea with pectin (4 or 8%) had significantly lower body weight gain and food intake compared to the rats fed a control diet. Rats fed a blackcurrant and green tea diet with 8% pectin had significantly higher fecal nitrogen output and lower protein digestibility. No polyphenols were observed in the urine, feces and plasma of rats fed the control diet. Parent catechins and flavonols were absent in urine obtained from all diet groups. Gallocatechin glucuronide was only observed in the plasma of rats fed the blackcurrant and green tea diet without pectin. Meanwhile, epicatechin and catechin gallate were present in the feces of rats fed a blackcurrant and green tea diet with and without 4% pectin. Pectin (4 or 8%) added to the blackcurrant and green tea diet increased the plasma antioxidant capacity in rats. Inclusion of pectin in the diet altered the host absorption and metabolism of polyphenols from blackcurrant and green tea.
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