Dietary Milk Fat Globule Membrane Restores Decreased Intestinal Mucosal Barrier Development and Alterations of Intestinal Flora in Infant‐Formula‐Fed Rat Pups

Abstract

Scope: Milk fat globule membrane (MFGM), which contains abundant polar lipids and glycoproteins, can narrow the gap in growth and development between breast-fed and infant-formula-fed babies. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of MFGM supplementation in infant formula on intestinal epithelium maturation, tight junctions, and gut colonization in rat pups. Methods and results: Sprague Dawley rat pups consume one of the five diets from postnatal day 8, including rat breastfeeding (BF), infant formula (IF), and infant formula containing MFGM at 260 mg kg −1 body weight (BW), 520 mg kg −1 BW, or 1040 mg kg −1 BW. Results show that MFGM supplementation in infant formula can facilitate intestinal mucosal barrier maturation via promoting intestinal proliferation and differentiation, and increasing tight junction proteins. In addition, compared with that of the IF pups, the intestinal flora composition of MFGM-supplemented pups is more similar to that of BF pups. Conclusion: MFGM supplementation in infant formula can restore the intestinal development in infant-formula-fed pups, which suggests that the supplementation of MFGM in infant formula can better mimic breast milk.

Milk fat globule membrane supplementation protects against β-lactoglobulininduced food allergy in mice via upregulation of regulatory T cells and enhancement of intestinal barrier in a microbiota-derived short-chain fatty acids manner

“…In our previous study, MFGM supplementation increased TJ proteins and alleviated intestinal inflammation in obese mice, thereby enhancing intestinal barrier [24]. MFGM restored the intestinal development through increasing TJ proteins expressions, promoting intestinal proliferation and differentiation in infant formula-fed pups [25]. Based on these studies, MFGM could exert beneficial effects on immunomodulation and intestinal barrier.…”

“…PCR reactions were conducted as previously described. Briefly, the V3 to V4 regions of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene were amplified in accordance with a previous study [25]. PCR reactions were conducted in 20 µL mixture including 10 ng DNA template, 0.4 μL FastPfu Polymerase, 0.8 μL each primer (5 μmol/L), 2 μL dNTPs (2.5 mmol/L), and 4 µL 5 × FastPfu Bufferd and reaction system was carried out under the following procedure: 95 ℃ for 120 s, at 95 ℃ for 30 s by 27 cycles, 55 ℃ for 30 s and 72 ℃ for 45 s and finally 72 ℃ for 10 min.…”

Maternal Oxidized Soybean Oil Administration in Rats during Pregnancy and Lactation Alters the Intestinal DNA Methylation in Offspring

“…Taking the crypt–villi axis as the baseline, IECs are in a highly differentiated status . IECs secrete mucus, antimicrobial peptides, and other chemicals to prevent harmful luminal molecules from entering the systemic circulation . As one of the molecular regulators secreted by intestinal endocrine cells, 5-HT has the function of responding to microbial customization and maintaining the homeostasis of IECs .…”

Artificial rearing alters intestinal microbiota and induces inflammatory response in piglets

“…Prior work reported that artificial rearing from 7 days of age caused villus atrophy and deeper crypt in the small intestine of piglets ( Vergauwen et al, 2017 ). In rats, infant formula feeding led to stunted villus and decreased the expression of ZO-1, Claudin-3, and Claudin-4 in the ileum ( Gong et al, 2020 ). Singh et al (2020) found that formula feeding resulted in villus loss, a decrease in ZO-1, and apoptosis of intestinal epithelial cells in rat ileum.…”