Original Research
Changes in Intestinal Microbiota of Type 2 Diabetes in Mice in Response to Dietary Supplementation With Instant Tea or Matcha

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcjd.2019.04.021Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective

Gut microbiota plays a key role in metabolism and health in diabetes patients with gastrointestinal microbiota dysbiosis. Thus, regulating the ecological balance of gut microbiota may provide a pathway toward improvement for these patients. Our previous study showed that functional ingredients in tea may inhibit cornstarch digestion in vitro.

Methods

A cornstarch–tea diet was developed, and in this study we investigated the effects of such a diet on blood glucose and gut microbiota in diabetic mice.

Results

Diabetes resulted in significant weight loss, hyperphagia and hyperglycemia. 16S rDNA sequencing revealed that in diabetes there is significantly increased Bacteroidaceae, Helicobacteraceae, Ruminococcaceae, Enterobacteriaceae, Rikenellaceae and Saccharibacteria_genera_incertae_sedis, and significantly decreased Lactobacillaceae, Prevotellaceae, Coriobacteriaceae, Verrucomicrobiaceae and Bifidobacteriaceae. The cornstarch‒tea diet resulted in a trend toward reduced blood glucose, with particularly increased levels of Coriobacteriaceae, Lactobacillaceae, Prevotellaceae and Bifidobacteriaceae, and decreased Bacteroidaceae, Ruminococcaceae, Helicobacteraceae and Enterobacteriaceae.

Conclusions

Instant tea and matcha supplementation had beneficial effects on regulation of blood glucose and gut microbiota, reversing the changes in microbiota caused by alloxan injection. The cornstarch‒tea regulation pathway is involved in bacterium group regulation rather than single-species regulation, which suggests that cornstarch combined with tea may be used as a functional food supplement for diabetes patients.

Résumé

Objectif

Le microbiote intestinal joue un rôle déterminant dans le métabolisme et la santé des patients diabétiques ayant une dysbiose (déséquilibre du microbiote gastro-intestinal). Par conséquent, le maintien de l'équilibre écologique du microbiote intestinal de ces patients peut ouvrir une voie vers l'amélioration. La présente étude nous montre que les ingrédients fonctionnels du thé peuvent inhiber la digestion de l'amidon de maïs in vitro.

Méthodes

Nous avons élaboré un régime à base d'un thé contenant de l'amidon de maïs et, dans cette étude, nous avons examiné les effets de ce régime sur la glycémie et le microbiote intestinal de souris diabétiques.

Résultats

Le diabète a entraîné une perte de poids importante, une hyperphagie et une hyperglycémie. Le séquençage du gène ARNr 16S a révélé qu'en présence de diabète les Bacteroidaceae, les Helicobacteraceae, les Ruminococcaceae, les Enterobacteriaceae, les Rikenellaceae et les Saccharibacteria_genera_incertae_sedis augmentaient de manière significative, et que les Lactobacillaceae, les Prevotellaceae, les Coriobacteriaceae, les Verrucomicrobiaceae et les Bifidobacteriaceae diminuaient de manière significative. Le régime à base de thé contenant de l'amidon de maïs avait tendance à réduire la glycémie, et notamment d'augmenter le nombre de Coriobacteriaceae, de Lactobacillaceae, de Prevotellaceae et de Bifidobacteriaceae, et de diminuer le nombre de Bacteroidaceae, de Ruminococcaceae, de Helicobacteraceae et d'Enterobacteriaceae.

Conclusions

La supplémentation en thé soluble et en matcha a eu des effets bénéfiques sur la régulation de la glycémie et du microbiote intestinal, puis a annulé les changements causés par l'injection d'alloxane dans le microbiote. Puisque la voie de régulation du thé contenant de l'amidon de maïs est impliquée dans la régulation d'un groupe de bactéries plutôt que dans la régulation monospécifique, cela montre que les patients diabétiques peuvent utiliser un thé contenant de l'amidon de maïs comme supplément alimentaire fonctionnel.

Introduction

Diabetes is a medical problem worldwide, with hyperglycemia leading to complications like cardiovascular disease and diabetic nephropathy 1, 2. Diabetes is currently not curable, and its complications cause significant distress. Diet has a strong influence on health and is involved in the development of some diseases 3, 4, including diabetes 5, 6. In particular, digestion and absorption of carbohydrates leads directly to a rapid increase in blood glucose, and thus diabetes patients must strictly control their diet in addition to receiving drug therapy. In our previous study (7), we found that cornstarch contains a high level of resistant starch (>50%), which is beneficial in diabetes. In addition, functional ingredients in tea, such as tea polyphenols and Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), were shown to greatly inhibit cornstarch digestion in vitro, suggesting cornstarch combined with tea's functional ingredients could be used as a basic formulation in the functional diet of diabetes patients (7). It is well known that tea has a long history in China, and is consumed worldwide as a healthy beverage. The active ingredients in tea have many benefits, and EGCG can inhibit gluconeogenesis (8), inhibit lipid absorption (9) and reduce insulin resistance (10), etc.

Most importantly, the gastrointestinal tract is a place for digestion and absorption of one's diet, and it contains many complex microbes that play significant roles in digestion and metabolism with profound effects on nutrition and health of the host. Recent studies have suggested that diabetes patients have gastrointestinal microbiota dysbiosis 11, 12, which leads to dietary metabolic disturbance and worsened hyperglycemia. Thus, regulating the gastrointestinal microecology balance may serve as a pathway to improvement in diabetes patients. Interestingly, studies have shown that tea has beneficial effects on the intestinal microbiota by elevating good bacteria and reducing pathogenic bacteria, among other advantages 13, 14, 15. Therefore, matcha and instant tea (2 common tea active ingredients) were selected and used to establish a cornstarch‒tea diet for diabetes patients. In this study, we investigated the effects of the cornstarch‒tea diet on body weight, food intake and blood glucose, and then assessed the regulation mechanism of cornstarch‒tea diet intervention on gut microbiota. To do this, we used a mouse model of diabetes, and aimed to present some basic information for intervening and preventing diabetes through regulation of gut microbiota.

Section snippets

Materials

Cornstarch (CAS No. 9005-25-8) and dextrin (CAS No. 9005-65-6) were purchased from Qinhuangdao Lihua Starch (Qinghuangdao, China). Butter was provided by Fonterra Brands (Auckland, New Zealand). Cake flour was purchased from Shangdong Luzhong Kite Flour (Luzhong, China). Meringue powder was purchased from Guangdong Changxing Biotechnology (Changxing, China). Eggs were purchased from the Hangzhou Lianhua supermarket (Hangzhou, China). Potassium dihydrogen phosphate (CAS No. 7778-77-0) and

Food intake and body weight performance:

The average body weights for the DM-C, DM-M and DM-IT mice were much lower than for the N-C mice. The average daily food intake in the DM-C, DM-M and DM-IT mice was much higher than that in the N-C mice. The DM-C mice had the lowest average body weight (22 to 28 g), but had the highest average daily food intake (6 to 16 g/mouse/day) compared with the other groups. The average body weight and daily food intake in the DM-IT and DM-M mice were not clearly different. From the highest to lowest

Conclusions

Diabetic mice had significant weight loss, hyperphagia and hyperglycemia, and also showed significant increases in Bacteroidaceae, Helicobacteraceae, Ruminococcaceae, Enterobacteriaceae, Rikenellaceae and Saccharibacteria_genera_incertae_sedis, and significant decreases in Lactobacillaceae, Prevotellaceae, Coriobacteriaceae, Verrucomicrobiaceae and Bifidobacteriaceae. The cornstarch instant tea or matcha diet decreased food intake, improved body weight loss and resulted in a trend in reduced

Acknowledgments

The authors thank International Science Editing (http://www.internationalscienceediting.com) for editing this manuscript. This work was supported by a grant from the Public Benefit Foundation of Zhejiang Province (LGN18C200010).

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