Clinical microbiology Lactobacillus plantarum TN627 significantly reduces complications of alloxan-induced diabetes in rats Wacim Bejar a , Khaled Hamden b , Riadh Ben Salah a , Hichem Chouayekh a, * a Laboratoire de Microorganismes et de Biomolécules (LMB), Centre de Biotechnologie de Sfax (CBS), Université de Sfax, Route de Sidi Mansour Km 6, BP “1177”, 3018 Sfax, Tunisia b Laboratoire d’Ecophysiologie animale, Faculté des Sciences de Sfax (FSS), Tunisia article info Article history: Received 13 February 2013 Received in revised form 18 July 2013 Accepted 22 August 2013 Available online 31 August 2013 Keywords: Probiotic Alloxan-induced diabetes Lactobacillus plantarum TN627 Antidiabetic effects Pancreas Liver and kidney functions abstract This study aimed to assess the potential of the probiotic strain Lactobacillus plantarum TN627 for pre- venting alloxan-induced diabetes in rats. The oral administration of this probiotic was noted to signifi- cantly improve the immunological parameters, protect the pancreatic tissues, and reduce the pancreatic and plasmatic a-amylase activities and level of plasma glucose in the treated as compared to the control group of rats. Furthermore, this probiotic treatment was observed to markedly reduce pancreatic and plasmatic lipase activities and serum triglyceride and LDL-cholesterol rates and to increase the level of HDL-Cholesterol. It also exerted efficient protective effects on the liver and kidney functions evidenced by significant decreases in serum aspartate transaminase, alanine transaminase, lactate dehydrogenase, and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase activities, as well as creatinine and urea contents. Taken together, the findings indicate that L. plantarum TN627 exhibits attractive in vivo antidiabetic effects that may be helpful in preventing diabetic complications in adult rats. Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Diabetes mellitus is a chronic and complex metabolic disorder that represents one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity worldwide. It is a major and increasing health problem that affects millions of people from all gender and age groups worldwide. Current estimates indicate that the prevalence of dia- betes mellitus in the age group 20e79 reached 6.4% in 2010 and is expected to attain 7.7% in 2030 [1]. This progressive and debili- tating disease has become one of the most troublesome and costly diseases worldwide, thereby posing a major challenge to global health. Type 1 diabetes mellitus is a multifactorial disease resulting from the synergistic effects of multiple genetic, environmental, and immunological factors [2,3]. It is associated with hyperglycemia and high oxidative stress, a major component of molecular and cellular tissue damage mechanisms in a wide spectrum of diseases [4]. In diabetic animal models, oxidative stress caused by the accumulation of free radicals leads to the damage of multiple tissues, including the b-cells of the pancreas, as well as to the distortion and dysfunction of several organs, including the liver and kidney [5,6]. With the development of cytobiology and molecular biology, the treatment and therapy of diabetes have undergone significant im- provements. They have, however, often been reported to have limited efficacy and to entail serious and costly complications, including weight gain and hypoglycemia, particularly in the case of insulin-based treatments [79]. These inadequacies have, there- fore, prompted a continuous search for new efficient and cost- effective preventive strategies to reduce or prevent the occur- rence of diabetes. Of particular interest to this search, probiotics have often been reported to offer promising potential and opportunities for the prevention and delay of various immune diseases. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization and World Health Organization, probiotics are defined as “live Microorganisms which when administrated in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host”. In this respect, several experimental studies have recently demonstrated the preventive effects of probiotic lactic acid bac- teria (LAB) strains on diabetes. The administration of such pro- biotic strains was, for instance, previously shown to be positively correlated with delays in glucose-tolerance, hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, dyslipidemia, and oxidative stress as well as the * Corresponding author. Tel./fax: þ216 74 870451. E-mail address: hichem.chouayekh@cbs.rnrt.tn (H. Chouayekh). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Anaerobe journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/anaerobe 1075-9964/$ e see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.anaerobe.2013.08.006 Anaerobe 24 (2013) 4e11