Flaxseed oil ameliorates aging in d-galactose induced rats via altering gut microbiota and mitigating oxidative damage.

BACKGROUND: Aging causes decreased antioxidant capacity and chronic inflammation and may even elevate cancer risks. Previous studies reported that flaxseed oil (FO) can alleviate age-related diseases, including improving alcoholic liver disease, atherosclerosis and diabetes. However, whether the intestinal microbiota accountable for this alleviation is still unknown. This study aims to study the antioxidant effects of FO in an aging rat model and the underlying mechanism between the intestinal microbiota and aging. RESULTS: Our results presented that serum and liver antioxidant capacities in FO group were up-regulated, and liver inflammation in FO group was reduced. The 16S rDNA sequencing showed that FO regulated the microbial community, including up-regulation of four families of Lactobacillus and six families of Clostridium. In addition, FO had also adjusted the relative abundance of several genera such as Ruminococcaceae_UCG-005 and Prevotella_9, which may be the key bacteria associated with the aging process. Colonic transcriptome analysis showed that there were 1679 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the Model group and the FO group (134 up-regulated and 1545 down-regulated). Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) revealed FO down-regulates the expression of the upstream genes Ptprc, Lck, Zap70, Lat and Lcp2 in the T cell receptor signaling pathway. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, FO improved antioxidant capacity and reduced intestinal microbial disturbances caused by aging damage, indicating that dietary FO has the potential to fight aging damage. This study provides a more comprehensive view of dietary intervention to improve aging. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.

Poria cocos Polysaccharides Alleviates Chronic Nonbacterial Prostatitis by Preventing Oxidative Stress, Regulating Hormone Production, Modifying Gut Microbiota, and Remodeling the DNA Methylome.

Chronic nonbacterial prostatitis (CNP) is a common male disease with high incidence and low cure rate. This study aims to investigate the anti-CNP potential of Poria cocos polysaccharides (PPs) in a λ-carrageenan-induced CNP rat model. Results showed that PPs exerted anti-CNP functions by reducing the prostate weight and prostate index as well as the level of C-reactive protein (CRP) and pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and IL-1ß). Further analysis on sex hormones revealed that PPs could favor CNP alleviation by regulating the production of testosterone (T), dihydrotestosterone (DTH), and estradiol (E2). PPs could also alleviate CNP by regulating the level of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), malonaldehyde (MDA), and superoxide diamutase (SOD) in inflamed prostate, thereby enhancing the anti-oxidative stress activity. As most non-digestive polysaccharides are fermented by gut microbiota rather than being digested directly by the host, we further analyzed PP-induced changes in gut microbiota. Microbiomic analysis revealed that PPs significantly change the profile of gut microbiota. Moreover, the relative abundance of five genera was recovered by PPs with a dose-effect relationship, thereby being suggested to play critical roles in the alleviation of CNP. Epigenomic (methylomic) analysis showed that PPs remodeled the DNA methylome of intestinal epithelia, by which PPs might modify hormone production. In the present study, we reported the anti-CNP activity of PPs as well as the involved mechanisms.