Oligosaccharides isolated from goat milk reduce intestinal inflammation in a rat model of dextran sodium sulfate-induced colitis

Background and aims There is increased interest in the study of manipulation of the flora with pro- and prebiotics regarding inflammatory bowel disease. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of oligosaccharides from goat milk in a rat model of dextran sodium sulfate- (DSS-) induced colitis. Methods Twenty rats were fed the same diet but with different sources of fiber (5% of the diet): cellulose or a mixture of goatʹs milk oligosaccharides (GMO) and cellulose. DSS treatment was used to induce a colonic inflammation. Several clinical and inflammatory parameters, as well as intestinal micorbiota and gene expression by DNA microarray technology, were evaluated. Results DSS induced a decrease in body weight which was not observed in rats fed the GMO (decrease of 21±11% in control rats vs increase of 5.2±8.6 in GMO rats, P<0.05). DSS also caused an acute colonic inflammatory process which was weaker in rats fed the GMO, as shown by colon myeloperoxidase activity (0.53±0.16 vs 0.14±0.07 U/mg of protein, P<0.05), as well as clinical symptoms measured by a scoring system (1.25±1.14 vs 0.4±0.07, P<0.05). GMO rats also showed less severe colonic lesions and a more favorable intestinal microbiota. The expression of genes involved in intestinal function, such as mucine-3, was down-regulated in DSS-control rats but returned to normal values in GMO rats. Conclusion GMO reduce intestinal inflammation and contribute to the recovery of damaged colonic mucosa.