This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Tannock, G. W. Articles by Welling, G. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Tannock, G. W. Articles by Welling, G. Agricola Articles by Tannock, G. W. Articles by Welling, G.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, April 2004, p. 2129-2136, Vol. 70, No. 4
0099-2240/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.4.2129-2136.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Impact of Consumption of Oligosaccharide-Containing Biscuits on the Fecal Microbiota of Humans

Department of Microbiology, University of Otago, Dunedin,¹ Fonterra Research Centre, Fonterra, Palmerston North, New Zealand,² Department of Medical Microbiology, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands³

Received 13 October 2003/ Accepted 11 December 2003

Human subjects consumed biscuits containing either galacto-oligosaccharides or fructo-oligosaccharides in a double-blinded, crossover study. The impact of supplementing the diet with three biscuits per day on the fecal microbiota was evaluated by selective culture of particular bacterial groups, measurement of ß-galactosidase activity, and nucleic acid-based analytical methods (PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis [PCR-DGGE] and fluorescent in situ hybridization). The composition of the bifidobacterial populations was monitored at the level of species (PCR-DGGE) and strains (pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of DNA digests), and representative cultures were tested quantitatively for their ability to use galacto-oligosaccharides. Technical improvements to DGGE analysis of the microbiota were made by the use of an internal standard that allowed valid comparisons of fragment staining intensities to be made between profiles, the use of S1 nuclease digestion to remove single-stranded DNA to facilitate cloning of DNA sequences cut from gels, and the extraction of RNA to be used as the template in reverse transcription-PCR-DGGE. RNA-DGGE profiles were markedly different (Dice's similarity coefficient, 58.5%) from those generated by DNA-DGGE. Neither the sizes of the bacterial populations nor the DNA-DGGE profiles of the microbiota were altered by the consumption of the biscuits, but the RNA-DGGE profiles were altered by the detection or increased staining intensity of 16S rRNA gene sequences originating from Bifidobacterium adolescentis and/or Colinsella aerofaciens in the feces of 11 of 15 subjects. ß-Galactosidase activity was elevated in the feces of some subjects as a result of biscuit consumption. Subjects differed in the ability of the bifidobacterial strains harbored in their feces to use galacto-oligosaccharides. Our observations suggest that a phylogenetic approach to analysis of the gut ecosystem may not always be optimal and that a more physiological (biochemical) method might be more informative.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Bibiloni, R., Tandon, P., Vargas-Voracka, F., Barreto-Zuniga, R., Lupian-Sanchez, A., Rico-Hinojosa, M. A., Guban, J., Fedorak, R., Tannock, G. W. (2008). Differential clustering of bowel biopsy-associated bacterial profiles of specimens collected in Mexico and Canada: what do these profiles represent?. J Med Microbiol 57: 111-117 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Vanhoutte, T., De Preter, V., De Brandt, E., Verbeke, K., Swings, J., Huys, G. (2006). Molecular Monitoring of the Fecal Microbiota of Healthy Human Subjects during Administration of Lactulose and Saccharomyces boulardii. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 5990-5997 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Maukonen, J., Satokari, R., Matto, J., Soderlund, H., Mattila-Sandholm, T., Saarela, M. (2006). Prevalence and temporal stability of selected clostridial groups in irritable bowel syndrome in relation to predominant faecal bacteria.. J Med Microbiol 55: 625-633 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Snart, J., Bibiloni, R., Grayson, T., Lay, C., Zhang, H., Allison, G. E., Laverdiere, J. K., Temelli, F., Vasanthan, T., Bell, R., Tannock, G. W. (2006). Supplementation of the diet with high-viscosity Beta-glucan results in enrichment for lactobacilli in the rat cecum.. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 1925-1931 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Rossi, M., Corradini, C., Amaretti, A., Nicolini, M., Pompei, A., Zanoni, S., Matteuzzi, D. (2005). Fermentation of Fructooligosaccharides and Inulin by Bifidobacteria: a Comparative Study of Pure and Fecal Cultures. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 71: 6150-6158 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Jernberg, C., Sullivan, A., Edlund, C., Jansson, J. K. (2005). Monitoring of Antibiotic-Induced Alterations in the Human Intestinal Microflora and Detection of Probiotic Strains by Use of Terminal Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 71: 501-506 [Abstract] [Full Text]