Bifidobacterium Animalis in Combination With Human Origin of Lactobacillus Plantarum Ameliorate Neuroinflammation in Experimental Model of Multiple Sclerosis by Altering Cd4+ T Cell Subset Balance Publisher Pubmed



Salehipour Z¹ ; Haghmorad D³ ; Sankian M¹ ; Rastin M¹ ; Nosratabadi R^{4, 5} ; Soltan Dallal MM^{6, 7} ; Tabasi N¹ ; Khazaee M¹ ; Nasiraii LR⁸ ; Mahmoudi M¹ Show Affiliations
Source: Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy Published:2017

Abstract

Background Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease of the central nervous system (CNS). Recent reports have shown that probiotics can induce immunomodulatory activity with promising effects in inflammatory diseases. This study was designed to reveal the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying the effect of Lactobacillus plantarum A7, which comprises human commensal bacteria, and Bifidobacterium animalis, a potential probiotic strain, on alleviation of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), an animal model of MS. Methods To evaluate the therapeutic effects of probiotic strains, female C57BL/6 mice (8–10 wks old) received Lactobacillus plantarum A7, Bifidobacterium animalis PTCC 1631or a mixture of both strains through oral administration daily for 22 days beginning simultaneous with induction of EAE. The clinical parameters were recorded daily. On Day 22, each mouse was bled, and their spinal cord was removed for histology analysis. The effects of the treatments on regulatory T (Treg) cells level were evaluated using flow cytometry, and T-cell proliferation was assessed using a BrdU incorporation assay. The supernatants of spleen and lymph nodes cultured and mononuclear cells were collected for quantification of different panel of pro and anti-inflammatory cytokines by ELISA. The analysis of gene expression was performed at RNA level for transcription factors by real-time PCR. Results The results showed that treatment with a mixture of the two strains caused a more significant delay in the time of disease onset and clinical score compared to when the strains were used alone. The pathological features of the disease, such as mononuclear infiltration into the CNS, were also inhibited more significantly by the combinational approach. The results also revealed that treatment with combination of both strains enhanced the population of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+-expressing T-cells in the lymph nodes and the spleen. Treatment with our probiotic strains markedly inhibited disease associated cytokines while increased anti-inflammatory cytokines. Additionally, L. plantarumA7 and B. animalis ameliorated EAE condition by favoring Th2 and Treg differentiation via up-regulation of Foxp3 and GATA3 in the brain and spleen as well as inhibited the differentiation of Th1 and Th17 cells. Conclusions The current research provided evidence that probiotic therapy with L. plantarum and B. animalis can effectively attenuate EAE progression as well as reinforce the polarization of regulatory T-cells. © 2017