TLR4 May Be Involved in the Regulation of Colonic Mucosal Microbiota by Vitamin A

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the specific role of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in the regulation of the intestinal mucosa-associated microbiota by vitamin A (VA). Methods: Both TLR4 -/- (knockout, KO) and wild-type (WT) female mice were randomly fed a VA normal (VAN) or VA deficient (VAD) diet for 4 weeks to establish the following four mouse model groups: TLR4 -/- mice fed a VAN diet (KO VAN), TLR4 -/- mice fed a VAD diet (KO VAD), WT mice fed a VAN diet (WT VAN), and WT mice fed a VAD diet (WT VAD). Then, the mice from each experimental group were mated with male mice with the same genetic background. The pups in the KO VAD and WT VAD groups were subsequently fed the VAD diet after weaning, while the pups in the KO VAN and WT VAN groups were fed the VAN diet continuously after weaning. The serum retinol levels of 7-week-old offspring were determined using high-performance liquid chromatography, and colons were collected from mice in each group and analyzed via 16S rRNA gene sequencing using an Illumina MiSeq platform to characterize the overall microbiota of the samples. Results: The abundance and evenness of the colon mucosa-associated microbiota were unaffected by dietary VA and TLR4 KO. VAD decreased the abundance of Anaerotruncus ( Firmicutes ), Oscillibacter ( Firmicutes ), Lachnospiraceae _ NK4A136 _ group ( Firmicutes ) and Mucispirillum ( Deferribacteres ) and increased the abundance of Parasutterella ( Proteobacteria ). TLR4 KO decreased the abundance of Bacteroides ( Bacteroidetes ) and Alloprevotella ( Bacteroidetes ). However, the abundance of Allobaculum ( Firmicutes ), Ruminiclostridium_9 ( Firmicutes ), Alistipes ( Bacteroidetes ), and Rikenellaceae_RC9 ( Bacteroidetes ) impacted the interaction between VA and TLR4. Conclusion: TLR4 may play a pivotal role in regulation of the intestinal mucosa-associated microbiota by VA to maintain the intestinal microecology.

Spatial heterogeneity of the shorebird gastrointestinal microbiome

“…Mucispirillum schaedleri is a known colonizer of the mucus layer in the mammalian GIT [52][53][54], and has been previously detected in chickens [55,56], vampire finches (Geospiza septentrionalis; Michel et al [57]) and turkeys [58]. In chickens, caecal M. schaedleri was significantly positively associated with fat deposition [55].…”

Vitamin A prevents lipopolysaccharide‐induced injury on tight junctions in mice

“…Vitamin A (VA) is a commonly used food supplement that maintains visual function, tissue development, differentiation, and immune response. Particularly, VA has been confirmed having its critical role of anti‐inflammatory effect (Xiao et al, ; Zhang et al, ). Interestingly, VA plays an essential role in tight junctions in vitro (Osanai, ; Rybakovsky et al, ).…”

Long‐Term Vegan Meditation Improved Human Gut Microbiota

“…in mice after interventions with prebiotics and probiotics is significantly higher than that in model mice ( P =0.0344) [ 42 ]. Members of the Lachnospiraceae family are involved in maintaining colon health and produce butyric acid to prevent colon cancer in humans [ 43 ]. Studies have found that the relative abundance of intestinal flora Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group in rats with advanced cognitive decline is significantly lower than that of normal rats with matched age.…”