Preventive Effect of a Postbiotic and Prebiotic Mixture in a Rat Model of Early Life Rotavirus Induced-Diarrhea.

Carla Morales-Ferré,Margarida Castell,María J Rodríguez-Lagunas,Francisco J Pérez-Cano,Jan Knol,Malén Massot-Cladera,Sebastian Tims,Àngels Franch,Ignasi Azagra-Boronat,Karen Knipping,Johan Garssen

doi:10.3390/nu14061163

Abstract

Rotavirus (RV) is the main cause of gastroenteritis in children. Prebiotics and, more recently, postbiotics are used for preventing and treating gastrointestinal infections. The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of a LactofidusTM, short-chain galacto-oligosaccharides (scGOS) and long-chain fructo-oligosaccharides (lcFOS) mixture, and their combination on RV infection, in a rat model, for early life diarrhea. Fifteen litters of suckling rats were intragastrically administered daily with the vehicle, the prebiotic mixture, the postbiotic or the combination. The RV was inoculated on day 5 and then fecal samples were clinically evaluated daily. Viral shedding, intestinal permeability assay, in vitro blocking assay, immunoglobulin profiles, and anti-RV response were assessed at day 8 and 16 of life. Cecal microbiota composition, intestinal gene expression, and short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) were analyzed at day 16. The incidence and severity of diarrhea were significantly reduced by all the supplementations. Moreover, they showed blocking activity, changes in the immunoglobulin profiles, in gut microbiota, and in the intestinal gene expression. The prebiotic mixture reduced gut permeability and changed the SCFA profile, whereas the postbiotic enhanced the expression of Toll-like receptors (TLRs). The combination preserved most of the individual observed effects, and furthermore, complementary effects, such as an increase in white blood cells and lymphocytes recruitment, as well as upregulation of TLR7 and TLR9 gene expression.

Highlights

Introduction iationsRotavirus (RV) is a nonenveloped virus of the family Reoviridae that infects the enterocytes of the small intestine, causing diarrhea, vomiting, and fever in children and in young animals, including calves and piglets [1–3]
RV + PRE showed an increase in body weight compared to REF animals
Despite the fact that RV infection causes intestinal malabsorption, which is normally associated with fluid loss and dehydration, inducing a reduction in the body weight, in the present study, the moderate diarrhea induced by RV SA-11 strain did not lead to a weight loss as in previous studies [13,27,32,37]

Summary

Introduction

Rotavirus (RV) is a nonenveloped virus of the family Reoviridae that infects the enterocytes of the small intestine, causing diarrhea, vomiting, and fever in children and in young animals, including calves and piglets [1–3]. The RV is the leading worldwide etiological agent of gastroenteritis and is responsible for approximately 20–30%. No specific curative treatment exists for RV gastroenteritis, and the most common treatment is oral rehydration solutions [1,5]. RV infection can be prevented by vaccination; its efficacy is lower in some African and Asian countries [4]. Dietary management is important in the care of infants with acute diarrhea. In countries where malnutrition is common, zinc supplementation can improve the outcome of acute diarrhea [1]. The improvement of hygiene and sanitation conditions reduced the morbidity and mortality due to RV infection [4]

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