Regulatory Effects of Maternal Intake of Microbial-Derived Antioxidants on Colonization of Microbiota in Breastmilk and That of Intestinal Microbiota in Offspring

Simple Summary How to effectively alleviate oxidative stress in pregnant sows and weaning piglets is one of the key issues in the pig industry. Maternal feeding is a key determinant of the composition and activity of the intestinal microbiota in both the mother and the offspring, while the effect of the maternal intake of microbial-derived antioxidants (MA) thereof remains to be elucidated. In the current study, we used Sprague Dawley rats as a model to investigate the impact of maternal MA additive on the microbiota of breastmilk, the maternal ileum, and the intestinal microbiota of the offspring on the day of birth and ten days afterwards, via analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences. We found that the impact of MA was more obvious on the microbiota of mature milk than on that of colostrum. In addition, MA additive did not significantly affect maternal ileal microbiota, but affected offsprings' colonic microbiota significantly ten days after birth. Collectively, the current study underlines colonic microbiota as a key target affected by maternal MA additive in the offspring with the potential to relieve oxidative stress by enriching beneficial bacteria, as well as aiding in the development of maternal feed for improved health outcomes in both mothers and their offspring. This study can provide a theoretical basis for the development of antioxidant feed and the improvement of animal welfare in the pig industry and elsewhere.Abstract In this study, sixteen Sprague Dawley (SD) female rats and eight SD male rats were co-housed to mate. Pregnant SD female rats were fed with a control diet or an MA diet. Breast milk, maternal ileum, and intestinal samples of the offspring were collected at the day of birth and ten days afterwards. The results showed that the impact of MA was more obvious on the microbiota of mature milk (p = 0.066) than on that of colostrum. In addition, MA additive did not significantly affect maternal ileal microbiota, but affected offsprings' colonic microbiota significantly ten days after birth (p = 0.035). From the day of giving birth to ten days afterwards, in addition to the increase in microbial richness and diversity, at genus level, the dominant bacteria of breastmilk changed from Pseudomonas veronii to Bacillus and Lactococcus. Different from breastmilk microbiota, ten days after giving birth, the maternal ileal microbiota and the offsprings' intestinal microbiota were dominated by Lactobacillus. Instead of ileal microbiota, offsprings' colonic microbiota is a key action site of maternal MA additive. Therefore, the current findings have significant implications for the development of maternal feed aimed at modulating the intestinal microbiota of offspring, ultimately leading to improved health outcomes for both mothers and their offspring.