Free fatty acids (FFA) are produced in the intestine by microbial fermentation. Recently, a family of G protein-coupled receptors (GPR) acting as FFA transporters has been reported including GPR120, which is expressed by intestinal epithelial cells. The GPR120 has been reported to affect the expression of glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1 as well as function as a control point for anti-inflammatory effects. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether 12 selected intestinal bacteria, representing the 4 major phyla present in the intestine, affect intestinal epithelial cell GPR120 and GLP-1 mRNA abundance. Supernatants of the 12 bacteria were added to differentiated Caco-2 intestinal epithelial cells cultured on filter inserts in concentrations corresponding to a cell:bacteria ratio of 1:200. After 4 h of incubation, changes in cellular mRNA of GLP-1 and GPR120 by bacterial supernatant were examined using real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. The abundance of GLP-1 mRNA decreased when cells were exposed to 4 of the 12 supernatants (P ≤ 0.05) compared with cells without bacteria added. Supernatants from 8 of the 12 bacteria analyzed increased the mRNA level of GPR120 (P ≤ 0.05) compared with cells without bacteria added. The alteration in cellular GPR120 mRNA was observed with bacteria categorized as either probiotics or bacteria capable of inducing an anti-inflammatory effect. The beneficial effect of these bacteria may very well be mediated by regulation of GPR120. The regulation of GPR120 by intestinal microbiota represents a direct signaling pathway for gut bacteria to affect host health and metabolism.
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Fredborg et al. (2012) studied this question.
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