| Title |
Microbial Fingerprinting Detects Unique Bacterial Communities in the Faecal Microbiota of Rats with Experimentally-Induced Colitis |
| Author |
Ashis K. Samanta1, Valeria A. Torok2, Nigel J. Percy2, Suzanne M. Abimosleh3,4, and Gordon S. Howarth4,5* |
| Address |
1National Institute of Animal Nutrition and Physiology, Bangalore, Karnataka 560030, India, 2South Australian Research and Development Institute, Plant and Soil Health, Waite Campus, Urrbrae, South Australia 5064, Australia, 3Discipline of Physiology, School of Health Sciences, The University of Adelaide, South Australia 5001, Australia, 4Gastroenterology Department, Women’s and Children’s Hospital, North Adelaide, South Australia 5006, Australia, 5School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Roseworthy Campus, The University of Adelaide, South Australia 5371, Australia |
| Bibliography |
Journal of Microbiology, 50(2),218-225, 2012,
|
| DOI |
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| Key Words |
faecal bacterial profiling, inflammatory bowel disease, T-RFLP, experimental colitis, rat |
| Abstract |
An abnormal composition of the gut microbiota is believed
to be associated with the pathogenesis of inflammatory
bowel disease (IBD). We utilized terminal restriction fragment
length polymorphism (T-RFLP) analysis to quantify
faecal bacterial communities from rats with experimental
colitis. Male Sprague Dawley rats (n=10/group) ingested
2% dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) or water for up to 7 days.
Rats were killed and colonic tissues collected for histological
analysis. Damage severity score in the distal colon was significantly
greater (P<0.001) following DSS consumption
compared to controls. T-RFLP faecal bacterial profiles generated
with either MspI or CfoI revealed a significant difference
(P<0.001) in community composition between healthy
and colitic rats, with bacterial composition in healthy rats
more variable than in rats with colitis. Operational taxonomic
units (OTU: taxonomically related groups of bacteria)
associated with either the healthy or colitic state were
identified. OTU (116, 226, 360, and 948; CfoI) and (118 and
188; MspI) were strongly associated with untreated healthy
rats, while OTU (94, 98, 174, and 384; CfoI) and (94 and
914; MspI) were predominantly associated with DSS-treated
colitic rats. Phylogenetic OTU assignment suggested that
Bacteroidales and Lactobacillus sp. were predominantly associated
with the colitic and healthy rats, respectively. These
results show that faecal bacterial profiling is a rapid, sensitive
and non-invasive tool for detecting and identifying changes
in gut microbiota associated with colitis. Restoring microbial
homeostasis by targeting colitis-associated OTU through
specific microbiological interventions could form the basis
of novel therapeutic strategies for IBD. |
