Liver Metabolomics Reveals the Effect of Lactobacillus reuteri on Alcoholic Liver Disease

Abstract

Alcoholic liver disease (ALD), a type of chronic liver disease that is prevalent worldwide, is still identified to have a poor prognosis despite many medical treatment protocols. Thus, it is urgent to develop and test new treatment protocols for ALD. <i>Lactobacillus reuteri</i> (<i>L. reuteri</i>) has been widely used in the clinical treatment of digestive system diseases, but studies on the protective effect of <i>L. reuteri</i> on ALD are considered to be rare. Therefore, in the present study, we examined the effect of <i>L. reuteri</i> on ALD and provide data that are significant in the development of new treatment protocols for ALD. An ALD model has been established in C57BL/6J mice treated according to the Gao-binge modeling method. Mice in the treatment group were administered with <i>L. reuteri</i>. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining, oil red O staining, immunohistochemistry, and biochemical analyses were performed to detect the phenotypic changes in the liver among mice in the different treatment groups. <i>L. reuteri</i> treatment reversed inflammatory cell infiltration and lipid accumulation. Moreover, AST, ALT, TG, and TCH levels were also reduced in the probiotics-treatment group. Five candidate biomarkers were found in the liver metabolites of different treatment groups by UPLC/QTOF-MS and a multivariate analysis. Several fatty acid metabolic pathways such as linoleic acid metabolism and glycerolipid metabolism were involved. All these findings suggested that <i>L. reuteri</i> treatment reversed the phenotype of ethanol-induced hepatitis and metabolic disorders. These findings provide evidence that <i>L. reuteri</i> might serve as a new therapeutic strategy for ALD.