Colonic infusion with Propionibacterium acidipropionici reduces severity of chemically-induced colitis in rats

Abstract

-Propionibacteria are cheese starters, also studied for their probiotic potential. An interesting feature is the ability of some strains to synthesize nitric oxide (NO) from nitrate reduction. NO production is hypothesized to be the mechanism by which some probiotics improve the mucosal barrier in rats. We therefore investigated the ability of two Propionibacterium acidipropionici strains (TL15 & TL223), which differ in their in vitro production of NO, to improve colitis in rats. Three groups of rats in which colitis was induced by trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS), received intracolonic infusions of 9 g·L -1 NaCl (n = 6), or 0.9 × 10 10 CFU·d -1 of TL15 (n = 7), or 1.4 × 10 10 CFU·d -1 of TL223 (n = 7), for 7 days. Following treatment, animal weight, food consumption, inflammatory score and myeloperoxydase (MPO) activity, together with changes in intestinal bacteria and SCFA concentrations, were investigated. As expected, both TL223 and TL15 supplements induced detectable counts of P. acidipropionici in colonic contents of rats (7.67 ± 0.67 and 7.43 ± 0.50 log eq. CFU·g -1 , respectively, as determined by real-time PCR). Food consumption and body weight of rats receiving propionibacteria were overall higher than those of rats with NaCl (P = 0.007 and P = 0.004). Moreover, both propionibacteria infusions similarly and dramatically reduced the gross score for inflammation (P = 0.004) as compared with NaCl (0.6 ± 0.3 and 0.7 ± 0.5 vs. 4.8 ± 1.5). A similar effect was observed for MPO activity (P = 0.056), which reached 2.50 ± 1.37 U·g -1 of mucosal tissue for NaCl vs. 0.05 ± 0.02 and 0.26 ± 0.18 U·g -1 for TL223 and TL15, respectively. This study shows for the first time the potential benefit of propionibacteria in colonic mucosa healing, but the mechanism involved needs to be elucidated.Propionibacterium / probiotic / colonic ulceration / nitric oxide / real-time PCR Résumé -L'administration colique de Propionibacterium acidopropionici atténue la sévérité de la colite induite chez le rat. Les bactéries propioniques, utilisées comme levains fromagers, sont également étudiées pour leurs propriétés probiotiques. Une caractéristique intéressante concerne la capacité de certaines souches à synthétiser du monoxyde d'azote (NO) lors de la réduction des nitrates. La production de NO est évoquée comme mécanisme d'action de certains probiotiques capables de restaurer la muqueuse intestinale chez des rats. Nous avons donc déterminé l'impact de deux souches de Propionibacterium acidipropionici (TL15 & TL223) présentant des capacités de synthèse de NO différentes in vitro, sur des colites induites chez le rat. Trois groupes de rats à colite induite par le trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS) ont reçu pendant 7 j des infusions intracoliques de solution * Corresponding author: michel@nantes.inra.fr 100 C. Michel et al.saline (9 g·L -1 NaCl), ou de suspensions de TL15 (0,9 × 10 10 UFC·j -1 ) ou de TL223 (1,4 × 10 10 UFC·j -1 ). Les effets des traitements sur le poids des animaux, leur consommation alimentaire, le sco...

Neutral detergent-soluble fiber improves gut barrier function in twenty-five-day-old weaned rabbits1

“…However, no clear relationship has been observed between soluble fiber and the presence of some fibrolytic bacteria that might act as a probiotic (Bacteroides spp., Butirivibrio fibrosolvens, Propionibacterium spp., and Ruminococus spp. ; Michel et al, 2005;Ohkawara et al, 2005).…”

Dairy Propionibacteria: Less Conventional Probiotics to Improve the Human and Animal Health

“…In this respect, it has been proposed that some surface compounds should be involved in immunomodulatory effects of propionibacteria since removal of surface layer proteins decreased the in vitro induction of anti-inflammatory cytokines [171]. By their side, Michel et al [193] demonstrated that colonic infusion with P. acidipropionici reduced the severity of TNBS induced colitis in rats whereas Kajander et al [194] reported that the multispecies probiotic mixture containing…”

Promising Immunomodulatory Effects of Selected Strains of Dairy Propionibacteria as Evidenced In Vitro and In Vivo

“…Dairy propionibacteria display various probiotic properties either similar to or distinct from those reported for probiotic bifidobacteria and lactic acid bacteria (3). Although an anti-inflammatory potential of a few dairy propionibacterium strains was occasionally suggested in vitro (15) or in animals (22,24,31), no reliable observation was established in terms of strain variability and of specific mechanisms involved. In addition, supplementation with dairy propionibacteria in human randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trials has mainly concerned mixtures comprising probiotic bacteria assigned to genera other than Propionibacterium but rarely with propionibacteria alone (16).…”