Effects of a Lactulose-Rich Diet on Fecal Microbiome and Metabolome in Pregnant Mice

Lactulose,
a safe and beneficial molecule, can be used in food
as a prebiotic and as an osmotic laxative during pregnancy. This work
evaluated the effects of dietary lactulose on the gut microenvironment
of pregnant mice using the fecal microbiota and metabolomic profiling.
After 2 weeks of feeding, the Bifidobacterium and Bacteroides abundances in the
mouse feces were significantly increased in the LAC-high (the diet
supplemented with 15% lactulose) group. A total of 15 metabolites,
including 1-monoolein, glucose-6-phosphate, and short-chain fatty
acids, were increased significantly in the LAC-high group. The serum
glucose and total cholesterol concentrations were significantly decreased,
while the progesterone level was significantly increased in the lactulose-fed
mice. In the LAC-high group, the colonic pH and intestinal permeability
were decreased, while the immunoglobulins in the colonic epithelial
cells and the small intestinal absorption capacity were significantly
increased. These findings indicated that lactulose supplementation
benefitted pregnancy performance in mice.