Stronger gut microbiome modulatory effects by postbiotics than probiotics in a mouse colitis model

Abstract

Probiotics are increasingly used as adjunctive therapy to manage gastrointestinal diseases, such as ulcerative colitis. However, probiotic use has posed some safety concerns. Thus, postbiotics are proposed as alternatives to probiotics in clinical applications. However, no study has directly compared the clinical benefits of probiotics and postbiotics. This study compared the beneficial effect of postbiotics and probiotics derived from the strain, Bifidobacterium adolescentis B8598, in a dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced experimental colitis mouse model. Four groups of mice (n = 7 per group) were included in this work: Control (received water plus saline), DSS (received DSS without postbiotic/probiotic), Postbiotic (received DSS plus postbiotic), and Probiotic (received DSS plus probiotic). Our results showed that intragastric administration of both probiotic and postbiotic ameliorated colitis, reflected by decreased histology scores in Postbiotic and Probiotic groups compared with DSS group (P < 0.05). The fecal microbiota alpha diversity was not significantly affected by DSS-, postbiotic, or probiotic treatment. However, the postbiotic treatment showed stronger effects on modulating the fecal microbiota beta diversity, composition, and metagenomic potential than the probiotic treatment. Overall, our findings suggested that probiotics and postbiotics had similar ability to improve disease phenotype but had distinct ability to regulate the gut microbiota and metabolic pathways in the context of ulcerative colitis. In view of the smaller safety concern of postbiotics compared with probiotics and its stronger modulatory effect on the host gut microbiota, we propose that postbiotics are to be considered for use as next-generation biotherapeutics in managing ulcerative colitis or even other diseases.

Both live and heat killed Lactiplantibacillus plantarum DPUL-F232 alleviate whey protein-induced food allergy by regulating cellular immunity and repairing the intestinal barrier

“…Consistent with the results in this study, Zhang et al found that both probiotics and postbiotics can alleviate DSSinduced intestinal injury. 56 Tight junction (TJ) is the most important structure to maintain the integrity of the epithelial layer; it consists of four types of transmembrane proteins: clau-…”

The Debate between the Human Microbiota and Immune System in Treating Aerodigestive and Digestive Tract Cancers: A Review

“…More recently, the application of the so-called postbiotics has been addressed [ 187 ]. Postbiotics are classified as non-viable bacterial products or functional bioactive compounds resulting from the fermentation of probiotic microorganisms aiming to confer health on the host [ 188 ]. For instance, inosine, butyrate, or propionate could modulate the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors [ 170 , 189 ].…”

Postbiotic Administration Ameliorates Colitis and Inflammation in Rats Possibly through Gut Microbiota Modulation

“…Postbiotics in the form of heat-killed bacteria or their metabolites have been shown to be able to improve health in some preclinical and clinical studies. For example, our previous study compared the therapeutic effects of administering live or dead Bifidobacterium adolescentis B8589 in dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis mice, and surprisingly found that heat-killed Bifidobacterium adolescentis B8589 had better anti-inflammatory and symptom-mitigating effects compared to live bacteria . Because postbiotics are nonviable, there is no requirement for gut colonization.…”

“…For example, our previous study compared the therapeutic effects of administering live or dead Bifidobacterium adolescentis B8589 in dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis mice, and surprisingly found that heat-killed Bif idobacterium adolescentis B8589 had better anti-inflammatory and symp- tom-mitigating effects compared to live bacteria. 14 Because postbiotics are nonviable, there is no requirement for gut colonization. Instead, their mechanisms of action rely more on enhancing the growth of native probiotics in the host colon and promoting downstream pathways that are beneficial to the host to improve colonic homeostasis.…”