Aqueous extract of Sargentodoxa cuneata alleviates ulcerative colitis and its associated liver injuries in mice through the modulation of intestinal flora and related metabolites

Feng Xu; Piao Yu; Hongmei Wu; Mei Liu; Hongyun Liu; Qian Zeng; Dengli Wu; Xiangpei Wang

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2024.1295822

Aqueous extract of Sargentodoxa cuneata alleviates ulcerative colitis and its associated liver injuries in mice through the modulation of intestinal flora and related metabolites

Front Microbiol. 2024 Jan 24:15:1295822. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1295822. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Feng Xu¹, Piao Yu¹, Hongmei Wu¹, Mei Liu¹, Hongyun Liu¹, Qian Zeng¹, Dengli Wu¹, Xiangpei Wang²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pharmacy, Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Guiyang, China.
² School of Chinese Ethnic Medicine, Guizhou Minzu University, Guiyang, China.

Abstract

Background: Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a refractory disease worldwide. Liver injury can be found clinically with UC, and now, it is found that gut dysbiosis is an important mechanism in the pathogenesis of UC. Sargentodoxa cuneata has been used as a traditional Chinese medicine and is commonly used clinically for the treatment of UC. The main objective of this study was to investigate the intrinsic mechanisms of Sargentodoxa cuneata in the treatment of UC and its associated liver injuries from the perspective of intestinal flora and related metabolites.

Methods: Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to identify the components in the aqueous extract of Sargentodoxa cuneata (AESc). Mice with UC induced by dextran sulfate sodium were used to study the effects of AESc on UC and its associated liver injuries. Furthermore, 16S rRNA gene sequencing and analysis were performed on intestinal contents, and correlation analysis of intestinal flora with short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and organic acids was performed.

Results: A total of 114 compounds were identified in AESc. AESc improved disease activity index scores, liver index, and colon length in mice with UC and had a good protective effect on intestine and liver injuries. Moreover, the administration of AESc regulated gut microbiota dysbiosis and the levels of a few SCFAs and organic acids in mice with UC. In addition, the correlation analysis results showed that the Megamonas and Bifidobacterium were the key intestinal flora related to the levels of differential SCFAs and organic acids in mice with UC after AESc intervention.

Conclusion: AESc has a good protective effect on UC and UC related liver injuries. Modulation of the intestinal flora and its metabolites (SCFAs and a few organic acids) is an important pathway for AESc in the treatment of UC and also provides a rationale for the clinical use of Sargentodoxa cuneata in the treatment of UC.

Keywords: Sargentodoxa cuneata; intestinal flora; organic acid; short-chain fatty acid; ulcerative colitis; ulcerative colitis-associated liver injury.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This work was supported by grants from Guizhou Provincial Basic Research Program (Natural Science) (Qian Kehe Foundation ZK [2022] General 497), Guizhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2021 National Natural Science Foundation of China Post-subsidy Fund Scientific Research Innovation Exploration Special Project (2018YFC170810-505), and the Scholarship Fund from the China Scholarship Council (no. 202208520056).