BEE POLLEN AND GUT MICROBIOTA

A polysaccharide from Fagopyrum esculentum Moench bee pollen alleviates microbiota dysbiosis to improve intestinal barrier function in antibiotic-treated mice

Research carried out at Nanchang University, China, in 2020, investigated the efficacy of a water-soluble polysaccharide from Fagopyrum esculentum Moench bee pollen on intestinal barrier integrity in antibiotic-treated mice. The animals were divided into two groups: treated with a broad-spectrum antibiotic (ceftriaxone) and the control group given no antibiotic. All the animals were administered 100 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg, and 400 mg/kg of pollen daily for three weeks. Mice treated with antibiotics displayed symptoms of growth retardation, atrophy of immune organs including thymus and spleen, increased gut permeability, and intestinal barrier damage. These symptoms were restored after intervention with bee pollen at different doses. In addition, 16S rDNA gene sequencing revealed that bee pollen enhanced microbial diversity and richness and changed the community structure, therefore, alleviating microbiota dysbiosis caused by the antibiotics. The authors concluded that bee pollen could relieve antibiotic-induced microbiota dysbiosis to improve intestinal barrier integrity by increasing intestinal secretion of immunoglobulin A and inhibiting inflammation.* *Zhu, L., Li, J., Wei, C., Luo, T., Deng, Z., Fan, Y. and Zheng, L., 2020. A polysaccharide from Fagopyrum esculentum Moench bee pollen alleviates microbiota dysbiosis to improve intestinal barrier function in antibiotic-treated mice. Food & Function, 11(12), pp.10519-10533.

Source:  https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2020/fo/d0fo01948h