The influence of different types of ß-glucans on the gut microbiota of rats fed milk gels

• Published in: Journal of functional foods 2022-02, Vol.89, p.104930, Article 104930
• Main Authors: Aljewicz, Marek, Nalepa, Beata, Ciesielski, Sławomir
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 16S rRNA; Acidity; Microbiome; Rats; Yogurt
• ISSN: 1756-4646; 2214-9414
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jff.2021.104930

[Display omitted] •The frequency of Bacteroides depends on the acidity of the product.•Body weight gain was significantly correlated with the abundance of Streptococcus sp.•β-glucans resulted in a decrease in Lactobacillus frequency.•Oat ß-glucan contributed to a higher Clostridium sensu stricto and Blautia counts. The effect of glucans on gut microbiota functions is still unclear. Therefore, this study was undertaken to describe the influence of structurally different ß-glucans (oat ß-glucan, curdlan and scleroglucan) on the structure of the gut microbiome in rats. The structure of intestinal microbiota was evaluated by high-throughput sequencing of the16S rRNA gene. Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were the dominant bacterial phyla in all animals. Oat ß-glucan contributed to a higher prevalence of bacterial genera Clostridium sensu stricto and Blautia, whereas curdlan increased the relative abundance of Akkermansia muciniphila. A positive correlation was noted between the relative abundance of Streptococcus bacteria and the growth rate of rats. The present study demonstrated that the consumption of non-acidified milk gels or acidified milk gels with a β-glucan dose recommended by EFSA (3.0–4.0 g per day) for 28 days did not induce significant changes in the structure of the gut microbiome in rats.