Microbiota sequence in mice affected by non-nutritive sweeteners

The aim of this project is to assess the effects of parental (F0) consumption of sucralose or stevia on the diversity and composition of the fecal microbiota, and to determine whether these alterations are transmitted to the offspring generations in C57BL/6J mice.F0 mice were randomly assigned to one of three groups: a control group receiving plain water, and two experimental groups receiving water supplemented with either sucralose or stevia for 16 weeks. All animals had ad libitum access to water and a standard diet.To evaluate the intergenerational effects of non-nutritive sweeteners, mice within each group were bred. After the lactation period, F1 offspring were weaned and exposed to the same protocol as their parents (F0). Subsequently, unrelated F1 mice from the same treatment group were bred to produce the F2 generation. Both F1 and F2 animals received only pure water and standard chow throughout their lifespan.Fecal samples were collected from each animal prior to euthanasia. Bacterial DNA was extracted, and 16S rRNA gene sequencing was performed using the Illumina MiSeq platform.