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Probiotic Mixture VSL#3 Alleviates Dextran Sulfate Sodium-induced Colitis in Mice by Downregulating T Follicular Helper Cells

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Summary

Clinical trials have shown beneficial effects of probiotics on inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), although the exact mechanism remains unknown. VSL#3, a mixture of 8 probiotic bacteria, has been confirmed to have adjunctive therapeutic effects on colitis. T follicular helper (Tfh) cells, a new separate subset of CD4+ T helper cells, have been proved to play a vital role in autoimmunity. The present study aimed to identify the beneficial effect of the probiotic mixture VSL#3 on the mouse model of colitis by regulating Tfh cells. Dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) was used to induce chronic colitis in C57BL/6 mice. VSL#3 (3×109 live bacteria) was given to C57BL/6 mice every other day for 60 days by gavage. The disease activity index (DAI), histological activity index (HAI), colon length and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity were detected. Immunofluorescence was used to visualize the location of Tfh cells. Immunoglobulins, Tfh cells and plasma cells were quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), flow cytometry, real-time PCR or Western blotting. The results showed that after DSS treatment, the humoral immunity was disordered in C57BL/6 mice, with increased IgM, IgG and IgA levels in colonic mucus and increased Tfh cells in mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN). VSL#3 treatment showed anti-inflammatory effects as evidenced by reduced DAI score, HAI score and MPO activity. IgM, IgG and IgA levels were significantly reduced in colon mucus, and the number of Tfh cells was markedly decreased in MLN after VSL#3 treatment. It was concluded that VSL#3 alleviates DSS-induced colitis by downregulating Tfh cells, and Tfh cells may become a potential therapeutic target for IBD.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Janssen Pharmaceutical Company of Johnson & Johnson for providing VSL#3. We thank Liang-ru ZHU for linguistic assistance during the preparation of this manuscript.

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Author notes

  1. Both authors contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Gastroenterology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022, China

    Xiao-jing Liu & Kai-fang Zou

  2. Department of Stomatology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022, China

    Ran Yu

Authors
  1. Xiao-jing Liu
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  2. Ran Yu
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  3. Kai-fang Zou
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kai-fang Zou.

Additional information

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 81800984, 81170361).

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Liu, Xj., Yu, R. & Zou, Kf. Probiotic Mixture VSL#3 Alleviates Dextran Sulfate Sodium-induced Colitis in Mice by Downregulating T Follicular Helper Cells. CURR MED SCI 39, 371–378 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11596-019-2045-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11596-019-2045-z

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