Cross-feeding among bifidobacteria on glycomacropeptide
Mai Morozumi, Yasuaki Wada, Muneya Tsuda, Fuka Tabata, Tatsuya Ehara, Hirohiko Nakamura, Kazuhiro Miyaji
Abstract
Bifidobacteria are considered beneficial for infant health, however, they are less prevalent in gut microbiota of formula-fed than in breast-fed infants. This study investigated the bifidogenic effects of cow’s glycomacropeptide (GMP) and metabolic enzymes that Bifidobacterium bifidum JCM1254 uses when grown in the GMP-containing medium. Bifidobacterium bifidum JCM1254 was able to be grown in the GMP-containing medium, and the growth was abolished when glycans were chemically cleaved. Abundance of carbohydrate metabolism-related proteins, including sialidase, were higher when Bifidobacterium bifidum JCM1254 was cultured in the GMP-containing medium than in the glucose-supplemented medium. Bifidobacterium breve ATCC15700 and Bifidobacterium longum subsp. infantis ATCC15697 were grown in the GMP-containing medium spent by Bifidobacterium bifidum JCM1254, and N-acetylneuraminic acid liberated by Bifidobacterium bifidum JCM1254 decreased when Bifidobacterium breve ATCC15700 was cultured in the spent medium. Collectively, GMP glycans are “cross-fed” among bifidobacteria, and carbohydrate metabolism-related proteins, expressed by Bifidobacterium bifidum, is involved in the cross-feeding.