Intestinal α-Defensins Play a Minor Role in Modulating the Small Intestinal Microbiota Composition as Compared to Diet.

ABSTRACT: The intestinal microbiota is at the interface between the host and its environment and thus under constant exposure to host-derived and external modulators. While diet is considered to be an important external factor modulating microbiota composition, intestinal defensins, one of the major classes of antimicrobial peptides, have been described as key host effectors that shape the gut microbial community. However, since dietary compounds can affect defensin expression, thereby indirectly modulating the intestinal microbiota, their individual contribution to shaping gut microbiota composition remains to be defined. To disentangle the complex interaction among diet, defensins, and small-intestinal microbiota, we fed wild-type (WT) mice and mice lacking functionally active α-defensins (Mmp7

SUBMITTER: Puertolas-Balint F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10269482 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature