Abstract
The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is widely used as a model system for research on aging, development, and host-pathogen interactions. Little is currently known about the mechanisms underlying the effects exerted by foodborne microbes. We took advantage of C. elegans to evaluate the impact of foodborne microbiota on well characterized physiological features of the worms. Foodborne lactic acid bacteria (LAB) consortium was used to feed nematodes and its composition was evaluated by 16S rDNA analysis and strain typing before and after colonization of the nematode gut. Lactobacillus delbrueckii, L. fermentum, and Leuconostoc lactis were identified as the main species and shown to display different worm gut colonization capacities. LAB supplementation appeared to decrease nematode lifespan compared to the animals fed with the conventional Escherichia coli nutrient source or a probiotic bacterial strain. Reduced brood size was also observed in microbiota-fed nematodes. Moreover, massive accumulation of lipid droplets was revealed by BODIPY staining. Altered expression of nhr-49, pept-1, and tub-1 genes, associated with obesity phenotypes, was demonstrated by RT-qPCR. Since several pathways are evolutionarily conserved in C. elegans, our results highlight the nematode as a valuable model system to investigate the effects of a complex microbial consortium on host energy metabolism.
Highlights
Fermented foods result from the metabolic activity of complex and heterogeneous bacterial communities, which proliferate within the food matrix using carbohydrate substrates to carry out fermentation processes
A study investigating the effect of Bifidobacterium infantis on C. elegans longevity found a modest dose-dependent lifespan extension when B. infantis was added to E. coli conventional food source, and such effects were observed when nematodes were fed on cell wall or protoplast fractions of B. infantis, suggesting the involvement of host protective pathways activated by bacterial cell wall components, rather than the production of bacterial metabolites or gut colonization [16]
In this work we provide evidence that feeding C. elegans with a lactic acid bacteria (LAB) consortium derived from Mozzarella di Bufala Campana (MBC) influences longevity, larval development, fertility, lipid accumulation, and gene expression related to obesity in this model organism, as supported by transcriptional analysis of some genes involved in fat metabolism
Summary
Fermented foods result from the metabolic activity of complex and heterogeneous bacterial communities, which proliferate within the food matrix using carbohydrate substrates to carry out fermentation processes. C. elegans is a differentiated multicellular organism with a nervous system, reproductive organs, and digestive apparatus It has a simple structure and a short life cycle (less than 3 days) and can be infected by different human pathogens that can replace the regular Escherichia coli food source. A study investigating the effect of Bifidobacterium infantis on C. elegans longevity found a modest dose-dependent lifespan extension when B. infantis was added to E. coli conventional food source, and such effects were observed when nematodes were fed on cell wall or protoplast fractions of B. infantis, suggesting the involvement of host protective pathways activated by bacterial cell wall components, rather than the production of bacterial metabolites or gut colonization [16]. In this work we provide evidence that feeding C. elegans with a LAB consortium derived from MBC influences longevity, larval development, fertility, lipid accumulation, and gene expression related to obesity in this model organism, as supported by transcriptional analysis of some genes involved in fat metabolism
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