Effects of skim milk fermented with Lactobacillus plantarum WW on the constitutions of rats fed a high-fat diet

摘要

This study investigated the effects of Lactobacillusplantarum WW–fermented skim milk (FSM) on thephysiques of rats fed a high-fat diet and the mechanismof lipid lowering. Sprague-Dawley rats were randomlydivided into a normal diet group (A), a high-fat dietgroup (B), a skim milk diet group (C), and an L. plantarumWW FSM diet group (D). After 12-wk feeding,we found that treatment with L. plantarum WW FSMcould significantly alleviate symptoms in the pathologicalgroup. Meanwhile, high-throughput sequencinganalysis showed that L. plantarum WW FSM also hada certain regulatory effect on the intestinal microorganismsin rats, which can increase the number of lacticacid bacteria and Bacteroides in the intestine. Moreimportantly, real-time quantitative PCR and Westernblot analysis showed that the probiotic was also involvedin the expression of genes related to fat metabolism,especially the PPARB and CEBPB genes. Ourstudy supports the hypothesis that the WW strain ofL. plantarum could be a potential probiotic to be usedin functional foods to alter lipid metabolism and reducecholesterol levels.