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Metabolic adaptation of colonic microbiota to galactooligosaccharides: a proof‐of‐concept‐study
Author(s) -
Mego M.,
Manichanh C.,
Accarino A.,
Campos D.,
Pozuelo M.,
Varela E.,
Vulevic J.,
Tzortzis G.,
Gibson G.,
Guarner F.,
Azpiroz F.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
alimentary pharmacology and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.308
H-Index - 177
eISSN - 1365-2036
pISSN - 0269-2813
DOI - 10.1111/apt.13931
Subject(s) - lachnospiraceae , prebiotic , butyrate , gut flora , medicine , metabolic adaptation , meal , feces , physiology , food science , fermentation , bacteria , zoology , metabolism , biology , firmicutes , microbiology and biotechnology , immunology , genetics , 16s ribosomal rna
Summary Background Prebiotics have been shown to reduce abdominal symptoms in patients with functional gut disorders, despite that they are fermented by colonic bacteria and may induce gas‐related symptoms. Aim To investigate changes in the metabolic activity of gut microbiota induced by a recognised prebiotic. Methods Healthy subjects ( n = 20) were given a prebiotic (2.8 g/day HOST ‐G904, HOST Therabiomics, Jersey, Channel Islands) for 3 weeks. During 3‐day periods immediately before, at the beginning and at the end of the administration subjects were put on a standard diet (low fibre diet supplemented with one portion of high fibre foods) and the following outcomes were measured: (i) number of daytime gas evacuations for 2 days by means of an event marker; (ii) volume of gas evacuated via a rectal tube during 4 h after a test meal; and (iii) microbiota composition by faecal Illumina MiSeq sequencing. Results At the beginning of administration, HOST ‐G904 significantly increased the number of daily anal gas evacuations (18 ± 2 vs. 12 ± 1 pre‐administration; P < 0.001) and the volume of gas evacuated after the test meal (236 ± 23 mL vs. 160 ± 17 mL pre‐administration; P = 0.006). However, after 3 weeks of administration, these effects diminished (11 ± 2 daily evacuations, 169 ± 23 mL gas evacuation). At day 21, relative abundance of butyrate producers (Lachnospiraceae) correlated inversely with the volume of gas evacuated ( r = −0.52; P = 0.02). Conclusion The availability of substrates induces an adaptation of the colonic microbiota activity in bacterial metabolism, which produces less gas and associated issues. Clinical trials.gov NCT02618239.