This study aimed to confirm the effects of Tibet kefir milk (TKM) on gut microbiota and metabolism. An obesity model was established by feeding a high-fat diet (HFD) to human-microbiota-associated rats. Next-generation sequencing and ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry were applied for gut microbiota and untargeted metabolomics, respectively. After 8 weeks of feeding, the enterotype in the HFD group was switched from ET1 (Prevotella/Akkermansia-dominant) to ET2 (Bacteroides/Akkermansia-dominant). Branched-chain amino-acids- and aromatic amino-acids-metabolism increased, and taurine-conjugated bile acids decreased in the HFD group. Compared with the HFD group, taurocholic acid increased in the TKM1 group, while l-threonine decreased, and equol, taurochenodeoxycholate, and taurodeoxycholic acid increased in the TKM2 group. The metabolite alteration suggested restorative bile acid metabolism, modified metabolic pattern of amino acids, and elevation of anti-obesity factors in the TKM-intervened animals. It can be deduced that changes by TKM intervention in the host gut metabolites are the major contributors to reducing fat deposition.
Keywords: Tibet kefir milk; amino acids; bile acids; enterotypes; equol; untargeted metabolomics.