The Effect of Multispecies Probiotic Supplementation on Iron Status in Rats

Katarzyna Skrypnik,Marcin Schmidt,Joanna Suliburska,Paweł Bogdański

doi:10.1007/s12011-019-1658-1

Katarzyna Skrypnik, Marcin Schmidt + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-019-1658-1

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Abstract

A range of interactions between gut microbiota and iron (Fe) metabolism is described. Oral probiotics ameliorate host’s iron status. However, this has been proven for single-strain probiotic supplements. Dose-dependence of beneficial probiotic supplementation effect on iron turnover remains unexplored. Our study aimed to investigate the effects of oral multispecies probiotic supplementation in two doses on iron status in rats. Thirty rats were randomized into three groups receiving multispecies probiotic supplement at a daily dose of 2.5 × 109 CFU (PA group, n = 10) and 1 × 1010 CFU (PB group, n = 10) or placebo (KK group, n = 10). After 6 weeks, rats were sacrificed for analysis, blood samples, and organs (the liver, heart, kidneys, spleen, pancreas, femur, testicles, duodenum, and hair) were collected. The total fecal bacteria content was higher in the PB group vs. PA group. Unsaturated iron-binding capacity was higher in the PB group vs. KK group. Serum Fe was lower in both PA and PB vs. KK group. Iron content in the liver was higher in the PB group vs. KK group; in the pancreas, this was higher in the PB group vs. the KK and PA group, and in the duodenum, it was higher in both supplemented groups vs. the KK group. A range of alterations in zinc and copper status and correlations between analyzed parameters were found. Oral multispecies probiotic supplementation exerts dose-independent and beneficial effect on iron bioavailability and duodenal iron absorption in the rat model, induces a dose-independent iron shift from serum and intensifies dose-dependent pancreatic and liver iron uptake.

Highlights

The human microbiota can have a total mass of as much as 2 kg and has been called a Bnewly discovered organ^ [1,2,3,4]
At the completion of the experiment, unsaturated iron-binding capacity (UIBC) was significantly higher in the PB group than in the KK group
A range of significant differences were found in the examined parameters between the PA and KK groups, despite there being no significant difference in the total fecal bacteria content between these groups

Summary

Introduction

The human microbiota can have a total mass of as much as 2 kg (comparable to that of a human brain) and has been called a Bnewly discovered organ^ [1,2,3,4]. A wide range of interactions between gut microbiota and iron (Fe) status have been extensively documented [5,6,7,8,9,10,11]. The development of new methods to ameliorate the quality of gut microbiota and its beneficial effect on the host’s health has become the aim of a significant worldwide research effort. Oral probiotic supplementation is the most effective intervention in this range [24]. It has been demonstrated that probiotic supplementation beneficially affects the host’s iron status. It has been demonstrated that iron acquisition is the main mechanism through which probiotic bacteria such as the Escherichia coli strain Nissle 1917 limit the intestinal development of pathogenic Salmonella typhimurium [26]

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