Administration of Lactobacillus evokes coordinated changes in the intestinal expression profile of genes regulating energy homeostasis and immune phenotype in mice

• Published in: British journal of nutrition Vol. 97; no. 6; pp. 1117 - 1127
• Main Authors: Nerstedt, Annika, Nilsson, Elisabeth C., Ohlson, Kajsa, Håkansson, Janet, Thomas Svensson, L., Löwenadler, Björn, Svensson, Ulla K., Mahlapuu, Margit
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 01-06-2007
• Subjects: animal models; Animals; Arrays; Bacteria; Biological and medical sciences; Dairy products; DNA microarrays; Energy balance; Energy homeostasis; energy metabolism; Energy Metabolism - genetics; Feeding. Feeding behavior; Fermented food; Food products; functional foods; Functional foods & nutraceuticals; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene expression; Gene Expression Profiling - methods; Genes; germ-free animals; Germfree; Homeostasis; Homeostasis - genetics; hosts; Hybridization; Ileum; Immune regulation; Immune response; Immune system; intestinal microorganisms; intestinal mucosa; Intestine; Intestine, Small - immunology; Intestine, Small - metabolism; Lactic acid; Lactic acid bacteria; Lactobacilli; Lactobacillus; Lactobacillus acidophilus; Lactobacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei; Male; mechanism of action; messenger RNA; Mice; microarray technology; Microflora; Milk; Nutrition research; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis - methods; Oligonucleotide microarray; Oral administration; Phenotype; Phenotypes; Polymerase Chain Reaction - methods; Probiotics; RNA, Messenger - genetics; strain differences; strains; Strains (organisms); Transcription; Transcription, Genetic; Vertebrates: anatomy and physiology, studies on body, several organs or systems; Sweden; United Kingdom > UK; United States > US; Germany; Energy homeostasis; Immune regulation; Oligonucleotide microarray; Lactobacillus; Digestive system; Rodentia; Gut; Homeostasis; Lactobacillus: Oligonucleotide microarray: Energy homeostasis: Immune regulation; Change; Gene expression; Vertebrata; Phenotype; Mammalia; Energy; Mouse; Animal; Bacteria; Lactobacillaceae
• ISSN: 0007-1145; 1475-2662
• DOI: 10.1017/S0007114507682907

Lactic acid bacteria are probiotics widely used in functional food products, with a variety of beneficial effects reported. Recently, intense research has been carried out to provide insight into the mechanism of the action of probiotic bacteria. We have used gene array technology to map the pattern of changes in the global gene expression profile of the host caused by Lactobacillus administration. Affymetrix microarrays were applied to comparatively characterize differences in gene transcription in the distal ileum of normal microflora (NMF) and germ-free (GF) mice evoked by oral administration of two Lactobacillus strains used in fermented dairy products today – Lactobacillus paracasei ssp. paracasei F19 (L. F19) or Lactobacillus acidophilus NCFB 1748. We show that feeding either of the two strains caused very similar effects on the transcriptional profile of the host. Both L. F19 and L. acidophilus NCFB 1748 evoked a complex response in the gut, reflected by differential regulation of a number of genes involved in essential physiological functions such as immune response, regulation of energy homeostasis and host defence. Notably, the changes in intestinal gene expression caused by Lactobacillus were different in the mice raised under GF v. NMF conditions, underlying the complex and dynamic nature of the host-commensal relationship. Differential expression of an array of genes described in this report evokes novel hypothesis of possible interactions between the probiotic bacteria and the host organism and warrants further studies to evaluate the functional significance of these transcriptional changes on the metabolic profile of the host.