Effect of oral supplementation of Lactobacillus reuteri in reduction of intestinal absorption of aflatoxin B 1 in rats

The goals of this work were to assess the ability of Lactobacillus reuteri to bind aflatoxin B 1 in the intestinal tract and determine its effect on intestinal absorption of the toxin dispensed in either single or multiple doses in a murine model. Male Wistar rats were used, and two experiments were conducted after bacteria were implanted. Experiment one involved a single‐oral dose of toxin, and the subsequent flow cytometric analysis of bacteria isolated from the small intestine and treated with specific FITC‐labeled AFB 1 antibodies. The second experiment was carried out supplying the toxin in 7 oral sub‐doses, and the later quantification of AFB 1 ‐Lys adducts in blood samples by ELISA assay. The results demonstrated that L. reuteri was able to bind AFB 1 in the intestinal tract, mostly in the duodenum. Furthermore, the AFB 1 ‐Lys adducts were present at significantly lower levels in those animals receiving AFB 1 plus bacteria than in those receiving only AFB 1 . Our findings confirm that probiotic bacteria could act as biological barriers in normal intestinal conditions thereby reducing the bioavailability of AFB 1 ingested orally in a single or multiple doses, thus avoiding its toxic effects. (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)