Transplantation of fecal flora against heart injury caused by doxorubicin

FMT or yellow wine polyphenolic compound (YWPC) alone effectively improved DOX-induced cardiac injury, manifested as improvement in myocardial fibrosis and disorder, decreased myocardial cell apoptosis, and maintenance of normal mitochondrial morphology. Both healthy mouse-derived and YWPC-remodeled microbiota transplanted into antibiotic-cleared recipient mice significantly protected the heart. Further analysis showed that transplanting normal or YWPC-remodeled microbiota increased the proportion of Bacteroidota and lowered the proportion of Proteobacteria, and both of these had higher levels of indole-3-propanoic acid (IPA) in their serum. Correlation analysis showed that IPA level was closely associated with heart function, and mitochondrial dynamic analysis showed that IPA prevented excessive mitochondrial fission; these effects required mediation by Nrf2.