Effects of tea polysaccharides on gut microbiota and physiological health indicators in mice

Tea polysaccharide (TPS) is a naturally occurring polysaccharide that has garnered increasing attention due to its remarkable biological activity and significant potential for exploitation. This study concentrated on investigating the alterations in gut microbiota composition and the physiological health of mice subjected to TPS exposure. In this study, a control group (CTRL), a high-dose TPS group (TPH), and a low-dose TPS group (TPL) were established to investigate the effects of TPS on the physiological condition of the intestinal microbiota, liver, intestines, and blood in murine subjects. The findings indicated that TPS has the potential to markedly enhance the relative abundance of beneficial probiotics, including Bacteroidota and Muribaculum, while concurrently diminishing the relative abundance of detrimental intestinal bacteria such as Prevotella_copri and Desulfovibrionia. Additionally, with respect to health indicators, TPS was found to effectively lower the glutamate-glutamate ratio (AST/ALT) and creatine kinase (CK). Consequently, TPS appears to significantly modify the species composition of the gut microbiota and demonstrates notable correlations between gut microbial populations and environmental factors. Since the structural composition of the gut microbiota is closely related to the health of the host, and TPS exerts its biological activity through direct interaction with the gut microbiota, exploring the effects of tea polysaccharides on organisms is inextricably linked to the study of the gut microbiota. In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that TPS has good biological activities such as hepatoprotective, antioxidant, hypoglycemic and antitumor.