Pediococcus acidilactici FZU106 alleviates high-fat diet-induced lipid metabolism disorder in association with the modulation of intestinal microbiota in hyperlipidemic rats

Probiotics have been proved to have beneficial effects in improving or intervening hyperlipidemia. The purpose of the current research was to investigate the ameliorative effects of Pediococcus acidilactici FZU106, a potential probiotic previously isolated from the traditional brewing of Hongqu rice wine, on lipid metabolism and intestinal microbiota in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced hyperlipidemic rats. Results showed that oral administration of P. acidilactici FZU106 obviously inhibited the abnormal increase of body weight, ameliorated serum and liver biochemical parameters related to lipid metabolism and oxidative stress. Histopathological evaluation showed that dietary intervention with P. acidilactici FZU106 could significantly reduce the excessive lipid accumulation in liver caused by HFD-feeding. Furthermore, P. acidilactici FZU106 intervention significantly increased the intestinal levels of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in HFD-fed rats, which was closely related to the changes of intestinal microbial composition and metabolism. Intestinal microbiota profiling by high-throughput sequencing at genus level demonstrated that P. acidilactici FZU106 intervention evidently modulating the composition of intestinal microflora by increasing the relative abundance of Butyricicoccus, Pediococcus, Rothia, Globicatella and [Eubacterium]_coprostanoligenes_group, and decreasing the relative abundance of Corynebacterium_1, Psychrobacter, Oscillospira, Facklamia, Pseudogracilibacillus, Clostridium_innocuum_group, Enteractinococcus and Erysipelothrix in HFD-fed rats. Integrative analysis based on correlation network indicated that serum and liver lipid metabolism related biochemical parameters were positively correlated with Corynebacterium_1, Pseudogracilibacillus, Facklamia and Nosocomiicoccus, but negatively correlated with Butyricicoccus, Pediococcus, Turicibacter, Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1, [Eubacterium]_coprostanoligenes_group and Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group. Additionally, oral administration of P. acidilactici FZU106 significantly regulated the mRNA levels of liver genes (including CD36, CYP7A1, SREBP-1c, BSEP, LDLr and HMGCR) involved in lipid metabolism and bile acid homeostasis. In conclusion, these findings provide the evidence that P. acidilactici FZU106 has the potential to improve lipid metabolism partly through regulating intestinal microbiota, and therefore may be used as a probiotic strain to produce functional foods to prevent hyperlipidemia.