195 Nor. Afr. J. Food Nutr. Res. I July – December 2019 I Volume 3 I Issue 6 Nor. Afr. J. Food Nutr. Res. 2019; 3(6): 195-200 https://doi.org/10.51745/najfnr.3.6.195-200 https://www.najfnr.org Beneficial Effects of a Fermented Maize product with Its Supernatant, Lactobacillus fermentum and Lactobacillus brevis in Rat Model of Colitis Haruna J. Audu 1 , Oyindamola A. Abiodun 2 , and Funmilola A. Ayeni 1 * 1 Department of Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. 2 Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. 1 Introduction Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a chronic, idiopathic inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract [1]. In healthy individuals, immunological tolerance to the gut microbiome is maintained, whereas in those with IBD, these homeostatic mechanisms remain disrupted [2]. Furthermore, the composition of the intestinal flora in patients with IBD is altered when compared with healthy individuals, resulting in a general loss of diversity [2]. It has been shown that dysbiosis can lead to a qualitative and quantitative decrease in the mucosal barrier and consequently, translocation of pro-inflammatory substances into the colon, which could be responsible for inflammation and subsequently colitis [3]. Therefore, there is currently a strong interest in exploring beneficial bacteria in the treatment of colitis. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are found in food and contribute to the healthy microbiota of human intestinal mucosal surfaces. Traditional fermented products are one of the primary sources of LAB [4-6]. In developing countries where probiotic products are not readily available, the next best option is fermented foods. Fermented cereal is consumed worldwide and provided different names in different countries. In Nigeria, Ogi is the name attributed to fermented cereal e.g. maize, sorghum, etc. This fermented cereal is frequently consumed as a meal for breakfast by many tribes. Occasionally, Raw Ogi (the slurry) is administered as a local fermentation product remedy against diarrhea, especially in rural areas with little access to proper health care [7]. Omidun, the supernatant obtained from the raw Ogi slurry, is locally utilized as a solvent to soak the bark or root of some plants and for Original Article A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T Article history: - Received 10 July 2019 - Accepted 10 November 2019 - Published 14 November 2019 * Corresponding author info: Dr. Oyindamola O. Abiodun E-mail: oyindamolaabiodun1@gmail.com Tel. +2347030964774 Dr. Funmilola A. Ayeni Email: funmiyeni@yahoo.co.uk Tel. +2347036138816 Access this article online Quick Response Code https://doi.org/10.51745/najfnr.3.6.195-200 Background: African fermented foods such as maize cereal (Ogi ) and its supernatant (Omidun) are reservoirs of beneficial lactobacilli and carboxylic acids. Based on their constituents, their beneficial effect in a rat model of 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulphonic (TNBS) acid-induced colitis was assessed in comparison with two lactobacilli in a rat model of colitis. Methods: Female Wistar rats were distributed into seven groups of 5 rats each; the rats were pretreated for 14 days prior to colitis induction with Ogi, Omidun, L. fermentum, L. brevis and 7 days post colitic induction. Colitis was induced by an intracolonic administration of TNBS. The response of the rats to treatment was assessed macroscopically and biochemically. Results: Treatment with the Dexamethasone, Ogi and Omidun resulted in a significant reduction in colonic damage score and weight/length ratio (p<0.05). Treatment with Ogi, Omidun, L. brevis, and dexamethasone significantly prevented depletion of colonic glutathione and superoxide dismutase. The up-regulation of myeloperoxidase activity was inhibited in all treated colitic rats (p<0.05). However, Ogi appears to produce a better protective effect than the other treatment groups. Conclusions: This study reports that Ogi protects Wistar rats against the deleterious effect of trinitrobenzene sulphonic acid better than pure lactobacilli strains. Keywords: fermented food, lactic acid bacteria, inflammation, oxidative stress. eISSN: 2588-1582 Making Nutrition a Development Priority in Africa Contents lists available at: Journal homepage: https://www.najfnr.org