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Temporal dynamics of gut microbiota in triclocarban-exposed weaned rats

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Abstract

Widely used as an antimicrobial in antibacterial bar soaps, triclocarban (3,4,4′-trichlorocarbanilide; TCC) is effective against Gram-positive bacteria but shows little efficacy against Gram-negative strains, potentially altering the composition of indigenous microflora within and on the human body. To date, the consequence of continuous or previous nonprescription antimicrobial exposure from compounds in personal care products on commensal microflora is still elusive. Previous research has shown that TCC exposure during gestation and lactation induced dysbiosis of gut microbial communities among exposed dams and neonates. However, the impact of antimicrobial exposure specifically after discontinuation of the use of TCC on the gut microbiota has not been investigated. In this study, weaned Sprague Dawley rats (postnatal day, PND 22) were provided ad lib access to TCC-supplemented diet (0.2% w/w or 0.5% w/w) for 4 weeks (phase I) followed by a 4-week washout period (phase II) to determine gut microflora changes both during continuous exposure to TCC and to determine the potential rebound following TCC withdrawal. Fecal samples were collected at baseline (PND 22) prior to TCC exposure and throughout phase I and phase II. The V4 region of 16S rDNA was sequenced from extracted total fecal DNA with the MiSeq platform. Exposure to both 0.2% w/w and 0.5% w/w TCC was sufficient to alter diversity of microbiota during phase I of treatment. This effect was further prolonged into phase II, even when TCC exposure was discontinued. Collectively, these data highlight the impact of both continuous and prior TCC exposure on gut microbial ecology and shed light onto the potential long-term health risk of daily nonprescription antimicrobial personal care product use.

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Acknowledgements

The study was conducted at the University of Tennessee Knoxville and supported by the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences to Dr. Jiangang Chen (1R21ES017475-01A1). The content of this article is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIEHS.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health, The University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    Rebekah C. Kennedy & Jiangang Chen

  2. Comparative and Experimental Medicine, The University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    Rebekah C. Kennedy

  3. Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA

    Rebekah C. Kennedy

  4. Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA

    Russell R. Fling

  5. Department of Biomedical Informatics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, 72205, USA

    Michael S. Robeson

  6. Department of Animal Science, The University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    Arnold M. Saxton & Liesel G. Schneider

  7. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA

    John L. Darcy

  8. Department of Biomedical and Diagnostic Sciences, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    David A. Bemis

  9. Department of Nutrition, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    Ling Zhao

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  1. Rebekah C. Kennedy
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  8. Ling Zhao
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  9. Jiangang Chen
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Correspondence to Jiangang Chen.

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The authors and the conduction of experiments adhered to the research ethics guidelines of the journal.

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The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Kennedy, R.C., Fling, R.R., Robeson, M.S. et al. Temporal dynamics of gut microbiota in triclocarban-exposed weaned rats. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 14743–14751 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-1627-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-1627-9

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