School of Medicine, Jianghan University, Wuhan, China.
Department of Pharmacy, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
J Sci Food Agric. 2023 Aug 15;103(10):5004-5018. doi: 10.1002/jsfa.12582. Epub 2023 Apr 12.
Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disorder characterized by pruritus and eczema lesions and psychiatric comorbidities. The gut-brain-skin axis plays a pivotal role during AD development, which might suggest a novel therapeutic strategy for AD. The present study aims to uncover the protective effects and underlying mechanisms of fructo-oligofructose (FOS), a type of prebiotic, on AD-like skin manifestations and comorbid anxiety and depression in AD mice.
Female Kunming mice were treated topically with 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene (DNFB) to induce AD-like symptoms and FOS was administered daily for 14 days. The results showed that FOS could alleviate AD-like skin lesions markedly as evidenced by dramatic decreases in severity score, scratching bouts, the levels of immunoglobulin E (IgE) and T helper 1(Th1)/Th2-related cytokines, and the infiltration of inflammatory cells and mast cells to the dermal tissues. The comorbid anxiety and depressive-like behaviors, estimated by the forced swimming test (FST), the tail-suspension test (TST), the open-field test (OFT), and the zero maze test (ZMT) in AD mice, were significantly attenuated by FOS. Fructo-oligofructose significantly upregulated brain neurotransmitters levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and dopamine (DA). Furthermore, FOS treatment increased the relative abundance of gut microbiota, such as Prevotella and Lactobacillus and the concentrations of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), especially acetate and iso-butyrate in the feces of AD mice. The correlation analysis indicated that the reshaped gut microbiome composition and enhanced SCFAs formation are associated with skin inflammation and behavioral alteration.
Collectively, these data identify FOS as a promising microbiota-targeted treatment for AD-like skin inflammation and comorbid anxiety and depressive-like behaviors. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.
特应性皮炎（AD）是一种慢性炎症性皮肤疾病，其特征为瘙痒和湿疹病变以及精神共病。肠-脑-皮肤轴在 AD 发展过程中起着关键作用，这可能为 AD 提供了一种新的治疗策略。本研究旨在揭示一种益生元低聚果糖（FOS）对 AD 样皮肤表现和 AD 小鼠伴发焦虑和抑郁的保护作用及其潜在机制。
雌性昆明小鼠经 2,4-二硝基氟苯（DNFB）处理诱导 AD 样症状，并用 FOS 每日处理 14 天。结果表明，FOS 可显著减轻 AD 样皮肤损伤，表现为严重程度评分、搔抓次数、免疫球蛋白 E（IgE）和 T 辅助 1（Th1）/Th2 相关细胞因子水平以及炎症细胞和肥大细胞浸润真皮组织明显降低。通过强迫游泳试验（FST）、悬尾试验（TST）、旷场试验（OFT）和十字迷宫试验（ZMT）评估 AD 小鼠的共患焦虑和抑郁样行为，发现 FOS 显著减轻。FOS 显著上调了脑神经递质 5-羟色胺（5-HT）和多巴胺（DA）的水平。此外，FOS 治疗增加了肠道微生物群的相对丰度，如普雷沃氏菌和乳酸杆菌，以及粪便中短链脂肪酸（SCFAs）的浓度，特别是乙酸盐和异丁酸盐。相关性分析表明，重塑的肠道微生物群组成和增强的 SCFAs 形成与皮肤炎症和行为改变有关。
综上所述，这些数据表明 FOS 是一种有前途的针对 AD 样皮肤炎症和伴发焦虑和抑郁样行为的微生物群靶向治疗方法。
