Microbiota and fecal fermentation products of dogs with inflammatory bowel disease supplemented with beta-glucans

Author(s)

Andressa Rodrigues Amaral

• Document type: Master's Dissertation
• Press: São Paulo.
• Institution: Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ/SBD)
• Defense date: 2020-10-22

Examining board members

Marcio Antonio Brunetto; Bruno Cogliati; Eliana Teshima

• Advisor: Marcio Antonio Brunetto

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is the most common cause of gastrointestinal disease in dogs and the most important cause of vomiting and diarrhea in dogs and cats. There is a consensus in literature about the existence of aberrant immune reaction to microorganisms of the gastrointestinal tract in a genetically predisposed individual, associated with dysbiosis and, consequently, alteration in the concentration of fermentation products produced by intestinal bacteria. Prebiotics are non-starch polysaccharides resistant to enzymatic digestion of monogastric animals that reach the large intestine and serve as a substrate for the growth and fermentation of beneficial bacteria to the detriment of the pathogenic. The immunomodulatory effects performed through this selective fermentation have interesting therapeutic potential in patients with IBD, which are widely discussed in the human literature, although poorly discussed in the veterinary literature. Thus, the present study aimed to evaluate the effects of β-glucan supplementation on the fecal microbiota of dogs with IBD identified and quantified by next generation genetic sequencing. For this, eighteen dogs with controlled IBD were selected to compose three experimental groups: A - supplemented with 0.1% β-glucans, B 0.1% of a prebiotic blend composed by MOS and β-glucans and C - placebo, and all of them received the same hydrolyzed diet for 60 days. In addition, routine blood counts and biochemical tests were performed and, for the purpose of monitoring clinical signs, specific canine enteropathy severity scores were applied. The abundances observed were evaluated by Generalized mixed linear model with binomial data, using logit link function. The model included fixed effects of treatments (A, B or C), time (T0 or T60), and interaction between them, beyond animal as random effect. At total, 10 phyla, 17 classes, 48 families and 101 different genera were identified among the 3 experimental groups. The predominant phylum, class, family and gender among the groups were, respectively, Firmicutes (24.30% - 99.79%), Clostridia (6.64% - 97.39%), Lachnospiraceae (0.6% - 89.7%) and Streptococcus (0.02% - 90.19%). The treatment with prebiotics modulated the population of several taxa according to time, but mainly, it positively modulated the phylum Firmicutes and only treatment B controlled the growth of Collinsella. Only treatment with β-glucan improved the Shannon index and showed improvement in dysbiosis. There was no difference in the fecal concentration of lactic acid between treatments. Supplementation with prebiotics improved the Canine IBD activity index (CIBDAI; p = 0.0084). The present study found that 0.1% supplementation of β-glucans in the diet of dogs with IBD was able to positively modulate microorganisms in the gastrointestinal tract after 60 days through the growth of beneficial bacteria and improvement of biodiversity. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 18/04574-5 - Microbiota and fecal fermentation products of dogs with inflammatory bowel disease supplemented with beta-glucans
• Grantee: Andressa Rodrigues Amaral
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master