Effect of fenofibrate on the diversity of intestinal flora in a mouse model of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Objective To investigate the effect of fenofibrate on the diversity of intestinal flora in mice with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease( NAFLD). Methods A total of 30 mice were randomly divided into normal group,high-fat group,and fenofibrate treatment group,with10 mice in each group. The mice in the high-fat group and the fenofibrate treatment group were given high-fat diet intervention for 14 weeks,and those in the normal group were given normal diet for 14 weeks. After 10 weeks of dietary intervention,the mice in the fenofibrate treatment group were given fenofibrate by gavage and high-fat diet for another 4 weeks,and the change in body weight was monitored during the whole process. Fecal samples were collected after 14 weeks,and high-throughput sequencing 16 S rRNA was used to investigate the diversity and difference of intestinal flora. Liver tissue samples were collected,and HE staining and oil red O staining were performed to observe the degree of steatosis. A one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison between multiple groups,and the least significant difference t-test was used for further comparison between two groups. Results After 10 weeks of intervention,the fenofibrate treatment group had a significantly lower body weight than the high-fat group( P < 0. 05). The results of HE staining and oil red O staining showed that the fenofibrate treatment group had a significantly lower degree of fat deposition than the high-fat group. There was a significant difference in intestinal flora between the fenofibrate treatment group and the high-fat group,while there was no significant difference in intestinal flora between the fenofibrate treatment group and the normal group. The fenofibrate treatment group had significant increases in the abundance of Bacteroidetes,Verrucomicrobia,Faecalibaculum,Muribaculaceae＿norank,and Akkermansia and significant reductions in the abundance of Firmicutes,Actinobacteria,Clostridium,Turicibacter,and Bifidobacterium. Conclusion The increases in the abundance of Bacteroidetes and Verrucomicrobia and the reductions in the abundance of Firmicutes and Actinobacteria suggest that fenofibrate may have positive significance in the treatment of NAFLD.