Project description:Bacillus licheniformis-fermented products (BLFP) are probiotics with antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory properties that can improve growth performance. This study aimed to, firstly, compare the fecal microbiota of cats with chronic diarrhea (n = 8) with that of healthy cats (n = 4) from the same household using next-generation sequencing and, secondly, evaluate the effectiveness of oral administration of BLFP in relieving clinical signs and altering the intestinal microbiota in diarrheal cats. Six out of eight cats with diarrhea showed clinical improvement after BLFP administration for 7 days, and in two cats the stool condition was normal. A higher Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio was noted in the feces of diarrheal cats without clinical improvement as compared with those in the healthy control group and in the diarrheal cats with clinical improvement after receiving BLFP. The phylum Bacteroidetes and class Bacteroidia decreased significantly in diarrheal cats regardless of BLFP administration. Blautia spp., Ruminococcus torques, and Ruminococcus gnavus, which belong to the Clostridium cluster XIVa and have been reported as beneficial to intestinal health, increased significantly in feces after BLFP treatment. Furthermore, a significant decrease in Clostridium perfringens was noted in diarrheal cats after BLFP administration. Overall, BLFP could be a potential probiotic to relieve gastrointestinal symptoms and improve fecal microbiota in cats with chronic diarrhea.
Project description:From a long time ago, supplementation of fermented enzyme foods could have worked health effects on the body in the east nevertheless, only a few studies reported functions of them such as weight loss and metabolic syndrome. Thus, it is necessary to be verified whether supplementation of fermented enzyme foods can act in the body as a functional material. Therefore, we investigated the anti-obesity effects of fermented mixed grain with digestive enzymes (FMG) in high-fat diet induced mice. Sixty C57BL/6J mice were divided into six dietary groups and fed a normal diet (ND), a high-fat diet (HFD), Bacilus Coagulans group, steamed grain group, low-dose fermented mixed grain group(L-FMG), high-dose fermented mixed grain group (H-FMG) supplement for 12 weeks. After sacrificing, body weight and body fat mass in H-FMG group were significantly decreased compared to HFD group with a simultaneous decrease in plasma lipids. Also, H-FMG significantly decreased the blood glucose and improved the glucose tolerance compared to HFD group. Moreover high-dose FMG supplementation dramatically decreased the levels of inflammatory cytokines which secreted from adipocyte. Taken together, our findings suggest that H-FMG ameliorate high fat-diet induced obesity and its complication and could be used as a potential preventive agent for obesity.
Project description:Effects of current therapeutic foods in undernourished Bangladeshi children compared to microbiota-directed food prototypes in gnotobiotic mice and piglets
