<i>Limosilactobacillus fermentum</i> HNU312 alleviates lipid accumulation and inflammation induced by a high-fat diet: improves lipid metabolism pathways and increases short-chain fatty acids in the gut microbiome

Abstract

A high-fat diet can cause health problems, such as hyperlipidemia, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic disorders. Dietary supplementation with beneficial microbes might reduce the detrimental effects of a high-fat diet by modulating the gut microbiome, metabolic pathways and metabolites. This study assessed the effects of <i>Limosilactobacillus fermentum</i> HNU312 (<i>L. fermentum</i> HNU312) on blood lipid levels, fat accumulation, inflammation and the gut microbiome in mice on a high-fat diet. The results indicate that <i>L. fermentum</i> HNU312 supplementation to high-fat diet-fed mice led to decreases of 7.52% in the final body weight, 22.30% in total triglyceride, 24.87% in total cholesterol, and 27.3% in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Furthermore, the addition of <i>L. fermentum</i> HNU312 significantly reduced the fat accumulation in the liver and adipose tissue by 18.99% and 32.55%, respectively, and decreased chronic inflammation induced by a high-fat diet. Further analysis of the gut microbiome revealed that on the one hand, <i>L. fermentum</i> HNU312 changed the structure of the intestinal microbiota, increased the abundance of beneficial intestinal bacteria related to lipid metabolism, and reversed the enrichment of lipid-related metabolic pathways. On the other hand, <i>L. fermentum</i> HNU312 increased the production of short-chain fatty acids, which can reduce liver inflammation and chronic inflammation induced by a high-fat diet. In summary, by regulating gut microbiota, <i>L. fermentum</i> HNU312 improved lipid metabolism pathways and increased short-chain fatty acids, which reduced body weight, blood lipids, fat accumulation and chronic inflammation caused by high-fat diets. Therefore, <i>L. fermentum</i> HNU312 could be a good candidate probiotic for ameliorating metabolic syndrome.