Effect Of Probiotic Lactobacillus Plantarum P-8 On Human Gut Microbiota

Probiotics play important roles in balancing the microbiota of human and animal gastrointestinal tracts and they are also major starter strains in dairy and other functional foods. Therefore, it has been a hot research topic for many scholars to separate specific probiotic strains which have excellent probiotic properties and also suitable for being added in functional foods. Studying effects on intestinal flora of human has also become an essential step to test the probiotic properties of one specific probiotic strainIn this study, several modern experimental technologies and data processing methods including 454 pyrosequecing technology, RT-PCR, QIIME data analysis platform were used to study the colonization ability of one potential probiotic, L.plantarum P-8, isolated by key laboratory of dairy biotechnology and engineering of inner mongolia agricultural university, and its influence on human intestinal flora. Results are shown as follows:(1) Intestinal bacteria of volunteers enrolled in the study are mainly composed of several well-known dominant bacteria which belong to Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes. Intestinal bacteria diversity and abundance of volunteers were not significantly affected by intake of L.plantarum P-8, while intestinal bacteria differences among individuals significantly reduced. Intake of L.plantarum P-8 for 28days significantly increased intestinal bacteria which belong to Leuconostoc, Lactobacillus, Sporacetigenium, Blautia, Staphylococcus genus, while dramatically reduced those belong to Shigella, Escherichia, Enterobacter. Intake of L.plantarum P-8 showed no significant influence on the content of the core bacterial genera except Blautia;(2) Intake of L.plantarum P-8 increased the number of Bifidobacteria in the gut of the volunteers within all ages, which effect was especially evident in the elderly volunteers;(3) L. plantarum P-8 could survive and colonize in human gut during oral intake while showed a trend to firstly decrease and then reach a stable state after stopping intake. To the end of the experiment, L.plantarum P-8 were basically no change occurs. Indicating that it has become a normal dwelling flora in the intestinal tract of volunteers;(4) Intake of L.plantarum P-8 significantly reduced the average levels of bile acid metabolism in volunteers. However, acetic acid and prophetic acid metabolism levels were significantly increased, and butyrate metabolism was not significant affected. Volunteers of middle-aged and elderly after intake of L.plantarum P-8 for 14 days showed significant increase of fecal SIgA content, which fell down with the increasing probiotic intake time and eventually reverted to the initial level.