Effects of Fermented Milk Containing Bifidobacterium animalis Subsp. lactis MN-Gup (MN-Gup) and MN-Gup-Based Synbiotics on Obesity Induced by High Fat Diet in Rats

Abstract

Given the probiotic effects previously found in Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis MN-Gup (MN-Gup) and its great application potential in dairy products, this study aimed to investigate the effects of fermented milk containing MN-Gup or MN-Gup-based synbiotics on high fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity in rats. Galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) and xylo-oligosaccharides (XOS) were selected as the tested prebiotics in MN-Gup-based synbiotics due to their promotion of MN-Gup growth in vitro. After nine weeks of HFD feeding, the obese rats were intervened with fermented milk containing MN-Gup (MN-Gup FM) or its synbiotics (MN-Gup + GOS FM, MN-Gup + XOS FM) for eight weeks. The results showed that the interventions could alleviate HFD-induced body weight gain, epididymal fat deposition, adipocyte hypertrophy, dyslipidemia and inflammation, but GOS and XOS did not exhibit significant synergies with MN-Gup on those alleviations. Furthermore, the interventions could regulate the HFD-affected gut microbiota and microbial metabolites, as shown by the increases in short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and alterations in obesity-related bile acids (BAs), which may play important roles in the mechanism underlying the alleviation of obesity. This study revealed the probiotic effects of MN-Gup on alleviating obesity and provided the basis for MN-Gup applications in the future.

Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis MN-Gup protects mice against gut microbiota-related obesity and endotoxemia induced by a high fat diet

“…For example, fermented milk containing Lactobacillus gasseri SBT2055 could significantly reduce visceral fat, subcutaneous fat, and body weight gain in obese subjects ( 24 ), and fermented milk containing active L. reuteri NCIMB 30242 could reduce the levels of LDL-C and TC in patients with hyperlipidemia ( 25 ). In the previous study, fermented milk containing MN-Gup has been found to have the potential to treat obesity in rats ( 15 ), but the role of MN-Gup in preventing obesity has never been known. Previous studies mostly focused on the effects of probiotics on pre-existing obesity using therapy models, in which the mice or rats were firstly treated to reach a state of obesity, and then interventions of probiotics were performed.…”

“…Therefore, the preventive effects of MN-Gup and fermented milk containing MN-Gup on HFD-induced obesity were investigated in this study. Additionally, the current study investigated different objects and phenotypes by comparison with the previous study ( 15 ). The effects of various doses of MN-Cup were evaluated and the differences between MN-Gup powder and the corresponding MN-Gup-contained fermented milk were compared in the current study, while the previous study focused on the comparison between MN-Gup and its combination with prebiotics in fermented milk.…”

“…The low and high doses of MN-Gup were chosen based on the previously published study ( 13 ). Fermented milk was prepared using a commonly used procedure for conventional production of fermented milk according to the previous study ( 15 ), and the main ingredients of fermented milk were provided by Mengniu Hi-tech Dairy Product Beijing Co., Ltd (Beijing, China). Briefly, fermented milk was prepared using lactic acid bacteria starter cultures ( Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus bulgaricus ), and then low and high doses of MN-Gup were respectively added to prepare the test fermented milk containing probiotics.…”

“…14056) carried by Shenzhou-11 re-entry spacecraft, and it has been found to have the capacity of regulating gut microbiota and gut homeostasis ( 13 , 14 ). In a previous study, we found that the intervention of fermented milk containing MN-Gup had a good performance in the treatment of obesity in an obese model using 9 weeks of HFD-fed rats ( 15 ). Nevertheless, whether MN-Gup works on preventing obesity is still unknown.…”

New Insights into High-Fat Diet with Chronic Diseases

“…The study by C. Wang et al investigates the effects of fermented milk containing Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis MN-Gup (MN-Gup), which could alleviate HFD-induced body weight gain, epididymal fat deposition, adipocyte hypertrophy, dyslipidemia and inflammation, which may play important roles in the mechanism underlying the alleviation of obesity [ 4 ]. Meanwhile, Y. Huo et al found that Bifidobacterium animalis subsp.…”