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To enhance physiological activity and probiotic availability of sea buckthorn juice, sea buckthorn juice pulp (BHJ) went through fermentation to the fermented (FHJ). In vitro, FHJ displayed better antioxidant and antidiabetic capacities. To further study effects of FHJ on diet-induced metabolic syndrome (MS) and possible mechanisms in vivo, C57BL/6 mice were fed on BHJ and FHJ under high fat diet (HFD). FHJ, rather BHJ, displayed better performance on ameliorating hyperlipidemia, insulin resistance, and oxidative stress in MS. Mechanistically, FHJ intervention significantly reversed the microorganism dysbiosis by restoring the microbial diversity, and modulating obesogenic bacteria abundance, like Oscillospira. Furthermore, fermentation altered FHJ's metabolomics, especially flavonoids, contributing to interactions between FHJ and probiotics, like Akkermansia and Lachnospiraceae. Furthermore, short-chain fatty acids, related to ameliorations of MS, were increased by FHJ. This study demonstrated that interactions between metabolomic alterations in FHJ and microorganisms were vital to attenuate MS., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Hyperuricemia (HUA) is a metabolic disorder caused by abnormal uric acid (UA) metabolism, which is a complex physiological process involving multiple organs (liver, kidney, and intestine). Although UA metabolism in the liver and kidneys has been elucidated, only a few studies have focused on the process in the intestine. With our growing knowledge of the effects of gut microorganisms on health, the gut microbiota has been identified as a new target for HUA treatment. In this review, the relationship between HUA and the gut microbiota is elucidated, and anti-hyperuricemia mechanisms targeting the intestine are discussed, such as the promotion of purine and UA catabolism by the gut microbiota, increases in UA excretion by the gut microbiota and its metabolites, regulation of UA absorption or secretion in the intestinal tract by certain transporters, and the intestinal inflammatory response to the gut microbiota. Additionally, probiotics ( Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli ) and prebiotics (polyphenols, peptides, and phytochemicals) with UA-lowering effects targeting the intestinal tract are summarized, providing reference and guidance for further research.

Background: Fermentation is a traditional food-preserving technique. It is an effective process, widely used to enrich the nutrients diversity and bioactivity of the fermented foods since ancient times. This study aimed at investigating the effects of various fermentation starters on the physicochemical, antioxidant, antimicrobial, and antidiabetic properties of blueberry juices. The blueberry juices were fermented by natural fermentation (NFBJ), self-made starters fermentation (SFBJ), and commercial starters fermentation (CFBJ); fresh blueberry juice (BBJ) was processed without fermentation for comparison., Results: Probiotics-fermented blueberry juices (SFBJ and CFBJ) showed less total and reducing sugars, higher titratable acidity, and a wider variety and higher amounts of organic acids than non-fermented blueberry juice (BBJ) did. All the fermented blueberry juices (NFBJ, SFBJ, and CFBJ) showed significantly (P < 0.05) higher antioxidant potentials than that of BBJ measured by 2,2'-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid, cupric-reducing antioxidant capacity, and ferric-reducing ability power assays. The SFBJ exhibited the highest antibacterial activities against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Salmonella Typhimurium, with inhibition zone diameters of 38.84 ± 1.74 mm, 34.91 ± 1.53 mm, and 36.18 ± 3.16 mm respectively. Compared with BBJ, the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of the SFBJ and CFBJ increased by two-to threefold. The α-amylase inhibitory activity of the SFBJ and CFBJ increased by 600%, whereas the spontaneous fermentation showed no improvement. The SFBJ and CFBJ promoted glucose consumption of HepG2 cell lines, indicating the promising potential for a higher glucose bio-utilization., Conclusions: The SFBJ and CFBJ showed remarkable improvements in the antioxidant, antimicrobial, and antidiabetic activities compared with non-fermented and spontaneous fermented juices, indicating their promising potentials as an antihyperglycemic agent. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry., (© 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.)

Blueberry dietary interventions have demonstrated remarkable potential against obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus. However, the effects of fermented blueberry juice on metabolic syndrome, the gut microbiota, and insulin resistance have not yet been reported. This study aimed to investigate the potential of fermented blueberry juice against obesity, hyperglycemia, and gut microbiota dysbiosis in high fat diet (HFD)-fed mice. Our study findings revealed that supplementation with fresh blueberry juice (BBJ), and fermented blueberry juice with homemade probiotic starter (FBJ) or commercial starter (CFBJ) significantly decreased fat accumulation and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels in HFD-fed mice. FBJ showed relatively more potency to reduce body weight than BBJ and CFBJ. The percentage increase in the body weight of the FBJ group was almost the same as that in the normal chow diet (NCD) group, and was approximately 10% lower than the BBJ and CFBJ groups. Overall, all blueberry juices significantly ameliorated hyperlipidemia and insulin resistance in HFD-fed mice. Moreover, the dietary interventions with BBJ, FBJ, and CFBJ for 17 weeks significantly improved the community richness and diversity of the gut microflora along with an altered structure in the HFD-fed mice group. The FBJ treated mice group showed relatively low abundance of Firmicutes, obesity-related bacteria (Oscillibacter and Alistipes), and high abundance of lean bacteria (Akkermansia, Barnesiella, Olsenella, Bifidobacterium, and Lactobacillus) compared to the HFD-fed mice group. Furthermore, BBJ and FBJ treatments regulated the liver mRNA and protein expression levels involved in lipid and glucose metabolism. This study inferred that fermented blueberry juice could be used as a functional food to prevent the modern pandemics i.e., obesity and insulin resistance.

Lactobacillus plantarum ZJUFT17 (T17) is a potential probiotic bacterium isolated from Chinese traditional sourdough. The purpose of this study was to investigate its weight-reducing effects in mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) and further to elucidate possible mechanisms. Male C57BL/6J mice fed HFD were given T17 (2-4×10 8 cfu) intragastrically for 10 weeks. The results showed that the administration of T17 significantly suppressed HFD-induced body weight gain, alleviated HFD-induced increase in serum lipids and decreased energy intake. The serum levels of obesity-related metabolic signaling molecules, including insulin, adiponectin, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and the cytokines interleukin (IL)-1β and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, were markedly improved. The 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed that T17 administration dramatically modulated the gut microbiota, suppressing pathogenic and pro-inflammatory microbes and stimulating the microbes favoring anti-obesity. The weight-reducing efficacy of T17 may be explained by its ability to ameliorate systemic inflammation and insulin resistance mediated by gut microbiota. This study revealed that T17 could ameliorate obesity and the concomitant metabolic syndrome in mice and that the lactic acid bacteria in the sourdough ecosystem may also possess anti-obesity/weight-reducing properties., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

A total of 88 lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains were isolated from Chinese traditional sourdough and five of them were selected based on their bile resistance. All the five strains were identified as Lactobacillus plantarum by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. In vitro probiotic properties of the L. plantarum strains including tolerance to simulated gastrointestinal conditions, aggregation activity, and cholesterol removal ability were assessed. Two representatives, L. plantarum ZJUFT34 and L. plantarum ZJUFT17, were intragastrically administered to male C57BL/6J mice of 4-week age for 6 weeks to evaluate their in vivo health-promoting effects. The results indicated that L. plantarum ZJUFT34, L. plantarum ZJUFHN9, and L. plantarum ZJUFAH5 could survive the 3-h incubation in simulated gastric juice with a pH value of 2.0, while L. plantarum ZJUFT32 and L. plantarum ZJUFT17 exhibited better autoaggregation activities and coaggregation activities with pathogens. All the strains showed a cholesterol removal ability in vitro. However, L. plantarum ZJUFT34 or L. plantarum ZJUFT17 administration did not significantly change the serum total cholesterol in vivo. But the ratio of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol to low-density lipoprotein cholesterol was significantly increased by the L. plantarum administration. Besides, L. plantarum ZJUFT17 significantly lowered serum tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α concentrations. Furthermore, the administration of the LAB strains showed significant influences on lipid metabolism-related gut microbiota. These findings suggested that the L. plantarum strains may benefit the prevention of metabolic syndrome.

Graphical abstract Highlights • Intake of GML induced adverse effects on body weight, serum lipids and gut microbiota. • L. plantarum ZJUFT17 could attenuate the adverse effects induced by GML in mice. • Administration of L. plantarum ZJUFT17 could modulate the gut microbiota in mice. • L. plantarum ZJUFT17 may be a candidate for probiotics. Abstract Glycerol monolaurate (GML) is a naturally occurring surfactant and is widely used as a food emulsifier. New evidence, however, has shown that intake of GML could result in metabolic syndrome as well as gut microbiota dysbiosis in mice. In this study, male C57BL/6J mice fed normal chow diet with or without GML supplementation were administered with Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from Chinese sourdough for 6 weeks to investigate the influence of GML and the L. plantarum strains on body weight, serum lipid profiles, inflammatory responses and gut microbiota. The results showed that L. plantarum could attenuate the adverse effects induced by GML, especially the strain L. plantarum ZJUFT17, which showed good performance in suppressing body weight gain, lowering total cholesterol, reducing the serum tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α level and enhancing the α-diversity of gut microbiota in mice supplemented with GML. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Constipation is a widespread gastrointestinal issue. This work aimed to investigate anti-constipation capacities of 9 novel strains of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium using in vitro experiments for initial exploration and then further confirmed through in vivo models including both zebrafish and mice. The in vitro experimental results revealed that L. plantarum T34 and L. paracasei YJ10 could survive under the simulated gastrointestinal tract conditions as standard strain L. rhamnosus (LGG) did. L. paracasei YJ10 and L. casei Lc showed the highest 22 h's aggregation rate. L. rhamnosus W1 showed the highest coaggregation rate with E. coli and with S. aureus. T34 had the largest inhibition zones against S. typhimurium and L. Monocytogenes. The highest adhesion rates with HT-29 cells were L. casei Lc, LGG and W1. Principal component analysis (PCA) and Fuzzy synthetic evaluation (FSE) were performed to evaluate the in vitro probiotic potential of the 9 strains comprehensively. The order of scores on in vitro probiotic property from high to low was as follows: T34, W1, YJ10, Lc, LGG, SLT, SS, Lb, YN4 and LQSQ. The subsequent in vivo experiment of zebrafish further confirmed T34, W1 and YJ10 have better anti-constipation ability compared to other strains. Furthermore, T34 relieve loperamide-induced constipation by promoting gut transit in the mice model. In conclusion, T34 was demonstrated to prevent constipation and may be suggested for use in food and pharmaceutical goods. [Display omitted] • Evaluating the anti-constipation potential of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium strains by PCA and FSE. • A comprehensive in vitro method for assessing anti-constipation ability was developed. • Zebrafish model evaluation assays were included. • A cost-effective and effective screening method was developed for screening of anti-constipation probiotics. • Lactiplantibacillus plantarum T34 strain with anti-constipation potential was screened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]