Effects of fish oil with a high content of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on mouse gut microbiota.

Background And Aims: Many studies show that fish oil with high content of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) plays an important role in human health and disease. But the effects of fish oil with high content of PUFAs on gut microbiota, which are also known play a significant role in several human diseases, is not clear. In the present study we evaluated the effects of fish oil with high content of n-3 PUFAs on gut microbiota.

Methods: Changes in gut microbiota in ICR mice after supplementation of fish oil (containing eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid: ∼40 and 27% respectively) for 15 days was characterized using the hypervariable V3 region of the 16 rRNA gene-based polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profiling, DNA sequencing, and phylogenetic analysis techniques.

Results: Fish oil treatment resulted in a decrease in Helicobacter, Uncultured bacterium clone WD2_aaf07d12 (GenBank: EU511712.1), Clostridiales bacterium, Sphingomonadales bacterium and Pseudomonas species Firmicutes, and several uncultured bacteria.

Conclusions: Fish oil with a high content of n-3 PUFAs are capable of producing significant changes in the gut microbiota that may, at least in part, explain the health benefits or injury induced by fish oil use.