Accumulating evidence suggests that the gut microbiota plays an important role in the pathogenesis of
colitis and that its composition could be modulated by exposure to dietary components. Thus, it may be possible to ameliorate the severity of
colitis through administration of dietary components. Herein, we determined the effects of orally administered
resveratrol on the gut microbiota composition and the resulting inflammatory status of a
dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced
colitis mouse model. Our results supported our hypothesis that dietary
resveratrol altered the microbial composition and restored microbial community diversity in DSS-treated mice. Specifically,
resveratrol effectively decreased the abundance of the genera Akkermansia, Dorea, Sutterella and Bilophila, and increased the proportion of Bifidobacterium in colitic mice.
Resveratrol was also able to prevent mouse
body weight loss, reduce the disease activity index, attenuate tissue damage, and down-regulate the expression of pro-inflammatory
cytokines such as
IL-2, IFN-γ,
GM-CSF, IL-1β,
IL-6, KC/GRO, and TNF-α in the colon of DSS-treated mice. Pearson's correlation analysis indicated significant correlations between the relative levels of these pro-inflammatory
cytokines and alterations of the gut microbiota. Our results demonstrated that dietary
resveratrol attenuated the inflammatory status and alleviated gut microbiota
dysbiosis in a
colitis mouse model.