Abstract:To investigate the regulatory effects of probiotic drops on gut health and microbiota of infants, sixteen healthy volunteers aged 6 to 24 months were recruited and their diet was supplemented with probiotic drops containing Bifidobacterium longum subsp. infantis R0033 and B. breve M-16V for 30 days. Their fecal short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) and branched-chain fatty acid (BCFA) contents, gut microbiota composition, and secretory immunoglobulin A were analyzed before and after the 30-day period of probiotic drop intake. The infants’ fecal SCFA concentrations showed an increase (the acetic acid level increased significantly from 63.97 mmol/L to 85.36 mmol/L (P<0.05)). Their fecal BCFA concentration also increased significantly from 1.86 mmol/L to 4.80 mmol/L (P<0.05). There was no significant change in the diversity of gut microbiota (P>0.05). At the species level, the relative abundances of Clostridium innocuum and C. cateniformis showed significant increase (P<0.05), whereas the relative abundances of B. longum, B. breve, and B. bifidum were increased but not a level of statistical significance (P>0.05). At the genus level, the relative abundances of Lachnoclostridium and Coprobacillus showed significant increase (P<0.05). The fecal concentration of secretory immunoglobulin A showed no significant difference (P>0.05). In conclusion, 30-day intake of probiotic drops can increase the concentrations of SCFA and BCFA and the relative abundances of beneficial bacteria in the infant gut. Probiotic drops are thus beneficial to gut health of infants.
