LAUSR

BACKGROUND Food polysaccharide 1,3-β-D-glucan (OBG) has been shown to alleviate ulcerative colitis (UC) in a mouse model, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we aimed to study potential mechanisms involving interactions among gut microbiota, microbial metabolites, and host metabolic function. RESULTS OBG alleviated colonic inflammation, barrier dysfunction, intestinal concentrations of short-chain fatty acids in mice with UC. In addition, the relative abundances of Muribaculaceae, Alistipes, Erysipelatoclostridium, and Blautia increased, while the abundances of Proteus, Lachnospiraceae, and Ruminococcus decreased within the gut microbiota upon OBG treatment. KEGG analyzes showed that intestinal enzymes altered upon OBG treatment were mainly enriched in sub-pathways of amino acid biosynthesis. Metabolomics analyses showed that L-tryptophan, L-tyrosine, L-phenylalanine and L-alanine increased, which were consistent with the predictive metabolism of gut microbiota. Correlation analysis and interaction networks highlighted gut microbiota (especially Lactobacillus, Parabacteroides, Proteus, and Blautia), metabolites (especially L-phenylalanine, L-tryptophan, L-tyrosine, and acetic acid), and metabolism (phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis) that may be key targets of OBG. CONCLUSION OBG is beneficial to the gut microecological balance in mice with colitis, mainly due to its impact on the interactions between gut microbes and amino acids metabolism (especially tyrosine and tryptophan metabolism). This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.