Role of the lower and upper intestine in the production and absorption of gut microbiota-derived PUFA metabolites

PLoS One. 2014 Jan 27;9(1):e87560. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0087560. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

In vitro studies have suggested that isolated gut bacteria are able to metabolize PUFA into CLA (conjugated linoleic acids) and CLnA (conjugated linolenic acids). However, the bioavailability of fatty acid metabolites produced in vivo by the gut microbes remains to be studied. Therefore, we measured intestinal concentration and plasma accumulation of bacterial metabolites produced from dietary PUFA in mice, first injected with a lipoprotein lipase inhibitor, then force-fed with either sunflower oil (200 µl) rich in n-6 PUFA or linseed oil (200 µl) rich in n-3 PUFA. The greatest production of bacterial metabolites was observed in the caecum and colon, and at a much lesser extent in the jejunum and ileum. In the caecal content, CLA proportions were higher in sunflower oil force-fed mice whereas CLnA proportions were higher in linseed oil force-fed mice. The accumulation of the main metabolites (CLA cis-9,trans-11-18:2 and CLnA cis-9,trans-11,cis-15-18:3) in the caecal tissue was not associated with their increase in the plasma, therefore suggesting that, if endogenously produced CLA and CLnA have any biological role in host metabolism regulation, their effect would be confined at the intestinal level, where the microbiota is abundant.

MeSH terms

  • Analysis of Variance
  • Animals
  • Bacteria / metabolism*
  • Fatty Acids, Nonesterified / blood
  • Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / metabolism*
  • Intestinal Mucosa / metabolism*
  • Intestines / microbiology*
  • Linoleic Acids, Conjugated / blood
  • Linoleic Acids, Conjugated / metabolism*
  • Linseed Oil
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Microbiota*
  • Plant Oils
  • Sunflower Oil
  • Triglycerides / blood

Substances

  • Fatty Acids, Nonesterified
  • Fatty Acids, Unsaturated
  • Linoleic Acids, Conjugated
  • Plant Oils
  • Sunflower Oil
  • Triglycerides
  • Linseed Oil

Grants and funding

CD benefits from a Danone Institute grant. BV is a Postdoctoral Fellow of the Fund for Scientific Research-Flanders (Belgium). PDC is a research associate from the FRS-FNRS (Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique, Belgium). PDC and NMD are recipients of FSR and FRSM subsidies (Fonds spéciaux de recherches, UCL, Belgium; Fonds de la recherche scientifique médicale, Belgium). PDC is a recipient of ERC Starting grant. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.