Medicinal lavender modulates the enteric microbiota to protect against Citrobacter rodentium-induced colitis

Abstract

<jats:p>Inflammatory bowel disease, inclusive of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, consists of immunologically mediated disorders involving the microbiota in the gastrointestinal tract. Lavender oil is a traditional medicine used to relieve many gastrointestinal disorders. The goal of this study was to examine the therapeutic effects of the essential oil obtained from a novel lavender cultivar, Lavandula × intermedia cultivar Okanagan lavender (OLEO), in a mouse model of acute colitis caused by Citrobacter rodentium . In colitic mice, oral gavage with OLEO resulted in less severe disease, including decreased morbidity and mortality, reduced intestinal tissue damage, and decreased infiltration of neutrophils and macrophages, with reduced levels of TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-22, macrophage inflammatory protein-2α, and inducible nitric oxide synthase expression. This was associated with increased levels of regulatory T cell populations compared with untreated colitic mice. Recently, we demonstrated that the composition of the enteric microbiota affects susceptibility to C. rodentium -induced colitis. Here, we found that oral administration of OLEO induced microbiota enriched with members of the phylum Firmicutes, including segmented filamentous bacteria, which are known to protect against the damaging effects of C. rodentium . Additionally, during infection, OLEO treatment promoted the maintenance of microbiota loads, with specific increases in Firmicutes bacteria and decreases in γ-Proteobacteria. We observed that Firmicutes bacteria were intimately associated with the apical region of the intestinal epithelial cells during infection, suggesting that their protective effect was through contact with the gut wall. Finally, we show that OLEO inhibited C. rodentium growth and adherence to Caco-2 cells, primarily through the activities of 1,8-cineole and borneol. These results indicate that while OLEO promoted Firmicutes populations, it also controlled pathogen load through antimicrobial activity. Overall, our results reveal that OLEO can protect against colitis through the microbial-immunity nexus and that a pharmacological agent, in this case OLEO, alters the normal enteric microbiota.</jats:p>

Lavandin (Lavandula × intermedia Emeric ex Loiseleur) essential oil from Spain: determination of aromatic profile by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry, antioxidant and lipoxygenase inhibitory bioactivities

“…Its biochemical composition is the key to understand the bioactivities of L. £ intermedia EOs such as antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, insecticide, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents (Papachristos et al 2004;Torras-Claveria et al 2007;Jianu et al 2013). These properties support the potential use of L. £ intermedia EOs as natural cosmetics and natural pharmaceutical ingredients useful for relieving gastrointestinal disorders and for fighting human protozoal pathogens (Moon et al 2006;Baker et al 2012). …”

Impacts of resistant starch and wheat bran consumption on enteric inflammation in relation to colonic bacterial community structures and short-chain fatty acid concentrations in mice

“…The discrepancy between studies suggests that components within the diet alter the intestinal microbiota composition. Indeed, investigators showed that diets fortified with lavender extract decreased the abundance of Proteobacteria in mice infected with C. rodentium [77], an observation linked to the exclusion of Proteobacteria by bacteria within the Firmicutes phylum [78]. A number of butyrogenic bacteria (e.g.…”

Fish Oil Attenuates Omega-6 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid-Induced Dysbiosis and Infectious Colitis but Impairs LPS Dephosphorylation Activity Causing Sepsis

“…Dysbiosis has been observed in IBD patients, and the microbiota has been shown to induce or even prevent colitic disease in mouse models [2], [3]. We recently demonstrated that the intestinal microbiota protects against lethal infectious colitis by regulating protective inflammatory responses [2] and plays a major role in modulating pharmacological efficacy of drugs to attenuate colitis [4]. However, little is known about the effects of dietary lipids on inducing specific microbial changes that are either protective or detrimental in IBD.…”