Alleviation Syndrome of High-Cholesterol-Diet-Induced Hypercholesterolemia in Mice by Intervention with Lactiplantibacillus plantarum WLPL21 via Regulation of Cholesterol Metabolism and Transportation as Well as Gut Microbiota

Abstract

Probiotics are prospective for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Until now, systematic studies on the amelioration of hypercholesterolemia have been rare in terms of (cholesterol metabolism and transportation, reshaping of gut microbiota, as well as yielding SCFAs) intervention with lactic acid bacteria (LAB). In this study, strains of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, WLPL21, WLPL72, and ZDY04, from fermented food and two combinations (Enterococcus faecium WEFA23 with L. plantarum WLPL21 and WLPL72) were compared for their effect on hypercholesterolemia. Comprehensively, with regard to the above aspects, L. plantarum WLPL21 showed the best mitigatory effect among all groups, which was revealed by decreasing total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels, upregulated cholesterol metabolism (Cyp27a1, Cyp7b1, Cyp7a1, and Cyp8b1) levels in the liver, cholesterol transportation (Abca1, Abcg5, and Abcg8) in the ileum or liver, and downregulated Npc1l1. Moreover, it reshaped the constitution of gut microbiota; specifically, the ratio of Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes (F/B) was downregulated; the relative abundance of Allobaculum, Blautia, and Lactobacillus was upregulated by 7.48–14.82-fold; and that of Lachnoclostridium and Desulfovibrio was then downregulated by 69.95% and 60.66%, respectively. In conclusion, L. plantarum WLPL21 improved cholesterol metabolism and transportation, as well as the abundance of gut microbiota, for alleviating high-cholesterol-diet-induced hypercholesterolemia.

Genome Analysis for Cholesterol-Lowing Action and Bacteriocin Production of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum WLPL21 and ZDY04 from Traditional Chinese Fermented Foods

“…L. plantarum WLPL21 and L. plantarum ZDY04, isolated from Chinese fermented soybeans and pickled vegetables [ 18 ], were cultured under anaerobic conditions at 37 °C in sterile deManRogosa Sharpe (MRS broth; Beijing Solarbio Science & Technology Co., Ltd., Beijing, China) in an anaerobic incubator (GeneScience Anaerobox IV, San Francisco, CA, USA) for 12 h.…”

“…In our previous study, L. plantarum WLPL21 and ZDY04 from Chinese fermented soybeans and pickled vegetables, respectively, were shown to play a great role in the alleviation of hypercholesterolemia in a high-cholesterol-diet-induced model in vivo [ 18 ]. However, elucidating its cholesterol-lowering mechanism and the existence of bacteriocin genes still stand as research hurdles.…”

Fermented vegetables in China: overview, novel processes, influencing factors, lactic acid bacteria and industrialisation status

“…Specific LAB from fermented fruits and vegetables can reduce serum cholesterol, thereby reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. L. plantarum WLPL21 and L. plantarum ZDY04, isolated from Chinese fermented soybeans and pickled vegetables showed that their excellent capacity for lowering cholesterol in vivo (Zhao et al, 2024). Fermented vegetables can also control high blood sugar, high blood pressure and regulate gut microbiota health (Niu et al, 2019;Yeon et al, 2019;Mathur et al, 2020;Daliri et al, 2022).…”

Metabolomics analysis of the lactobacillus plantarum ATCC 14917 response to antibiotic stress

“…L. plantarum CCFM1143 alleviated diarrhoea by inflammation regulation and gut microbiota modulation [ 6 ]. L. plantarum WLPL2 decreased high cholesterol and hypercholesterolaemia [ 7 ], and L. plantarum JS19 as well as L. plantarum A3 prevented irritable bowel syndrome symptoms [ 8 , 9 ]. Moreover, crude exopolysaccharides of L. plantarum-12 significantly inhibited the proliferation of colon cancer HT-29 cells and thus showed potential anti-cancer activity [ 10 ].…”