Effects of catalpa seed oil and pomegranate seed oil on body weight and intestinal flora in mice

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of different concentrations of catalpa seed oil (CSO) and pomegranate seed oil (PSO) on body weight and intestinal flora in mice. The results showed that the addition of 10% w/t CSO or PSO had a more significant effect than control (soybean oil) on reducing the body mass index of mice, which was reduced by 24.94% ± 0.08% (p < 0.01) and 25.88% ± 0.11% (p < 0.01), respectively. Histological observations indicated that no significant changes in the development and structure of mouse intestinal tissue were detected as a result of CSO and PSO. Using bioinformatics technology, CSO and PSO were used to study the clustering of operational taxonomic units and the relative abundance of microorganisms in intestinal bacteria. The analysis found that both functional lipids could reduce the relative abundance of γ-Proteobacteria. It is suggested that CSO and PSO have a regulatory effect on the structure of intestinal microflora in mice. The development reported in this paper provided theoretical support for the functional research and in-depth development of CSO and PSO.

Keywords:
catalpa seed oil; pomegranate seed oil; body weight; intestinal flora