Dietary Protein Sources Differentially Affect the Growth of Akkermansia muciniphila and Maintenance of the Gut Mucus Barrier in Mice

Abstract

Scope The gut microbiota plays an essential role in linking diet to host health. The specific role of different dietary proteins on the gut microbiota and health is less understood. Here, the impact of proteins derived from chicken and soy on the gut microbiota and host gut barrier in C57BL/6 mice is investigated. Methods and results Specific‐pathogen‐free and germ‐free mice are assigned to either a chicken‐ or a soy protein‐based diet for 4 weeks. Compared with a chicken‐protein‐based diet, intake of a soy‐protein‐based diet reduces the abundance of A. muciniphila and the number of goblet cells, lowers the level of Muc2 mRNA, and decreases the thickness of the mucus layer in the colon of specific‐pathogen‐free mice. In germ‐free mice, colonization with A. muciniphila combined with intake of a chicken‐protein‐based diet results in a higher expression of the Muc2 mRNA in colon, and surprisingly, an increased potential for oxidative phosphorylation in A. muciniphila compared with colonized mice fed a soy‐protein‐based diet. Conclusion These findings suggest possible mutually beneficial interactions between the growth and function of A. muciniphila and host mucus barrier in response to intake of a chicken‐protein‐based diet contrasting the intake of a soy‐protein‐based diet.

Pectin and inulin stimulated the mucus formation at a similar level: An omics‐based comparative analysis

“…Our current results demonstrated that two genera of health‐beneficial bacteria, Bifidobacteria and Akkermansia , remained similar in both cecum and mucus. They were both reportedly associated with the mucus layer and colonic MUC2 contents (Schroeder et al., 2018; Zhao et al., 2019). Moreover, though the abundance of cecal Lactobacillus was promoted by pectin, the amount of MUC2 in rats consuming pectin was still close to the rats intervened by inulin.…”

Calcium Oxalate Nephrolithiasis and Gut Microbiota: Not just a Gut-Kidney Axis. A Nutritional Perspective

“…The relationship between protein intake and gut microbiota composition has been investigated in several animal studies, giving conflicting results [78][79][80][81][82][83][84][85]. Rats fed a high-protein diet exhibited pro-inflammatory changes in gut microbiota composition, with an overrepresentation of pathobionts, such as Escherichia/Shigella and Enterococcus, depletion of species associated with the synthesis of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), such as Faecalibacterium, and protection of mucosa, such as Akkermansia [78,79].…”

“…These alterations of gut microbiota composition were emphasized when proteins were of animal origin [80]. However, other studies have shown that the intake of protein, especially of chicken origin, may also be associated with positive changes in gut microbiota composition of rats, including overgrowth of Akkermansia [81], Lactobacillus [82], and SCFA-producing taxa [83]. Red meat intake was also associated with increased representation of Lactobacillus and increased biodiversity in two studies [84,85], but in one of them, these changes were also accompanied by depletion of Prevotella and SCFA producers [85].…”

Akkermansia and Microbial Degradation of Mucus in Cats and Dogs: Implications to the Growing Worldwide Epidemic of Pet Obesity

“…Finally, it has been suggested that bacteria that live in the mucosa do not compete with the microbiota present in the lumen and therefore do not depend on dietary nutrients deriving from host food consumption [23,24]. However, the biochemical properties of mucin depend on the diet [203,204] and the glycan repertoire can select for distinct mucosa-associated bacteria [205]. Therefore, diet is also strongly, albeit indirectly, associated with the microbes attached to the mucosa.…”