Fecal bacteria transplantation replicates aerobic exercise to reshape the gut microbiota in mice to inhibit high-fat diet-induced atherosclerosis

Abstract

Aerobic exercise exerts a significant impact on the gut microbiota imbalance and atherosclerosis induced by a high-fat diet. However, whether fecal microbiota transplantation, based on aerobic exercise, can improve atherosclerosis progression remains unexplored. In this study, we utilized male C57 mice to establish models of aerobic exercise and atherosclerosis, followed by fecal microbiota transplantation(Fig 1a). Firstly, we analyzed the body weight, somatotype, adipocyte area, and aortic HE images of the model mice. Our findings revealed that high-fat diet -induced atherosclerosis mice exhibited elevated lipid accumulation, larger adipocyte area, and more severe atherosclerosis progression. Additionally, we assessed plasma lipid levels, inflammatory factors, and gut microbiota composition in each group of mice. high-fat diet -induced atherosclerosis mice displayed dyslipidemia along with inflammatory responses and reduced gut microbiota diversity as well as abundance of beneficial bacteria. Subsequently performing fecal microbiota transplantation demonstrated that high-fat diet -induced atherosclerosis mice experienced weight loss accompanied by reduced lipid accumulation while normalizing their gut microbiota profile; furthermore it significantly improved blood lipids and inflammation markers thereby exhibiting notable anti- atherosclerosis effects. The findings suggest that aerobic exercise can modify gut microbiota composition and improve high-fat diet-induced atherosclerosis(Fig 1b). Moreover, these beneficial effects can be effectively transmitted through fecal microbiota transplantation, offering a promising therapeutic approach for managing atherosclerosis.