Turk J Immunol. 2019; 7(1): 11-20 | DOI: 10.25002/tji.2019.955

Anti-inflammatory and Anti-atherogenic Effects of Lactobacillus plantarum in Hypercholesterolemic Mice

Mehmet Emrah Þekilli¹, Alexandra Bermudez-Fajardo¹, Ernesto Oviedo-Orta¹
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XH, UK

Introduction: Cardiovascular diseases are the most prevalent cause of human morbidity and mortality worldwide and atherosclerosis is the main underlying cause of it. Probiotics comprise live microorganisms which have been shown to have beneficial effects on the host when administered in the diet. Since probiotics are known to have immunomodulatory effects on the host immune system, these may directly (or indirectly) influence the inflammatory process by which atherosclerotic plaques grow. In this study, Lactobacilli plantarum is used as the probiotic of choice and its effects on T cell mediated immunity and plasma lipid profile as well as atherosclerotic plaque development are studied on an experimental animal model of the disease, the ApoE-/- mouse. Material and Methods: The strains were identified by morphological, physical, enzymatic and biochemical assessment. Flow cytometry was used to study T cell subsets. IL-10 levels were determined by ELISA. The effect of L. plantarum on plaque grow was measured using standard histopathological techniques. Results: The survival of L. plantarum along the gastrointestinal tract was confirmed after its isolation from faecal samples of treated animals. It was shown that L. plantarum is capable of increasing the proliferation of CD4+ CD25+ T cells (p=1.4×10–5) and the level of IL-10 (p=0.045) and decrease the size of atherosclerotic plaques (p=0.019) in the aortic sinus of the ApoE-/- mouse, without an improvement in cholesterol levels. Conclusion: In conclusion, the findings of this study provide supporting data for the use of L. plantarum as a potential therapeutic agent against atherosclerosis.

Keywords: Atherosclerosis, inflammation, L. plantarum, probiotic

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Lactobacillus plantarum’un Hiperkolesterolemik Farelerde Anti-enflamatuvar ve Anti-aterojenik Etkileri

Mehmet Emrah Þekilli¹, Alexandra Bermudez-Fajardo¹, Ernesto Oviedo-Orta¹
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XH, UK

Giriþ: Kardiyovasküler hastalýklar dünya genelinde en yaygýn insan morbidite ve mortalite sebebidir ve ateroskleroz bunun baþlýca altta yatan nedenidir. Probiyotikler, günlük besinle alýndýðýnda konaða yararlý etkileri olduðu gösterilen canlý mikroorganizmalarý içerir. Probiyotiklerin konak immün sistemi üzerinde immün düzenleyici etkileri olduðunun bilinmesi, bunlarýn aterosklerotik plaklarýn büyüdüðü enflamatuvar süreci doðrudan (veya dolaylý) etkileyebileceðini düþündürmektedir. Bu çalýþmada, probiyotik tercihi olarak Lactobacillus plantarum kullanýlmýþ, T hücre aracýlý immünite ve plazma lipid profiline, ayrýca aterosklerotik plak geliþimine olan etkileri hastalýðýn deneysel hayvan modeli, ApoE-/- fare, üzerinde çalýþýlmýþtýr. Gereç ve Yöntemler: Suþlar morfolojik, fiziksel, enzimatik ve biyokimyasal deðerlendirmeler ile tanýmlanmýþtýr. T hücre alt gruplarý akan hücre ölçer cihazý kullanýlarak çalýþýlmýþ, IL-10 seviyeleri ELISA ile belirlenmiþtir. L. plantarum’un plak büyümesi üzerine etkisi standart histopatolojik teknikler ile ölçülmüþtür. Bulgular: Tedavi görmüþ hayvanlarýn fekal örneklerinden izole edilmesini takiben L. plantarum’un sindirim kanalý boyunca hayatta kalýmý doðrulanmýþtýr. L. plantarum’un CD4+ CD25+ T hücre proliferasyonunu (p=1,4×10–5) ve IL- 10 seviyesini artýrabildiði (p=0,045) ve ApoE-/- farelerin aortik sinüslerindeki aterosklerotik plak boyutunu kolesterol seviyelerinde bir iyileþme olmaksýzýn küçültebildiði (p=0,019) gösterilmiþtir. Sonuç: Sonuç olarak, bu çalýþmanýn bulgularý L. plantarum’un ateroskleroza karþý potansiyel bir tedavi edici ajan olarak kullanýmýný destekler veriler saðlamýþtýr.

Anahtar Kelimeler: Ateroskleroz, enflamasyon, L. plantarum, probiyotik

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