Prebiotic Potential of Polygonatum sibiricum Red. Leaf Polysaccharides in Regulating Gut Microbiota to Alleviate Antibiotic-Associated Diarrhea

Antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD) is a common adverse reaction primarily caused by gut microbiota dysbiosis.The polysaccharides from the Polygonatum sibiricum Red.leaves (PsPs) have been shown to possess gut microbiota-regulating activity.However, the efficacy of PsPs in alleviating AAD remains unclear.The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of PsPs in alleviating AAD.First, PsPs were obtained by water extraction and ethanol precipitation.Subsequently, in vitro digestion and fecal fermentation were performed to evaluate the gastrointestinal stability of PsPs and the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs).Thereafter, the AAD mice model was induced by lincomycin hydrochloride.The probiotic effects of PsPs were comprehensively analyzed by changes in C57BL/6J mice body weights, colonic histopathology and gut microbiota composition.In vitro results revealed that PsPs were resistant to digestive degradation (93.08%-93.34%),effectively reached the intestines, and was utilized by the gut microbiota, thereby reducing the proportion of Klebsiella, increasing the relative abundance of Bifidobacterium, and significantly increasing the SCFA yields.Animal experiment results show that PsPs intervention alleviates diarrhea in AAD mice, restores the damaged intestinal barrier, and reshapes the gut microbiota community, increasing the abundance of Blautia and reducing the abundance of Klebsiella.Moreover, PsPs reduced the levels of inflammatory factors (MCP-1, LPS, IL-6, TNF-α) in mice.This study demonstrates that PsPs foster prebiotic potential and offer new insights for the development of AAD adjunctive intervention strategies based on polysaccharides derived from food and medicine homology.