Treatment with mannose oligosaccharides reverses the intestinal injury in the acetylsalicylic acid-treated rat model.

Mannose oligosaccharide (MOS) has been shown to promote animal growth, maintain intestinal health, and activate the intestinal immune system. However, the question of whether MOS can stimulate the immune system and alleviate acetylsalicylic acid (ASA)-induced gut damage remains unresolved. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of MOS pretreatment on the immunological and anti-inflammatory capabilities of rats with ASA-induced intestinal injury. Thirty-six male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 6 groups and were fed with 0 (negative control), 100, 300, 600, and 800 mg/kg·Body weight (BW) of MOS for 3 weeks. From day 8, rats were fed with 200 mg/kg BW of ASA for 14 days to induce intestinal injury. The growth performance, viscera index, serum and intestinal immunity, intestinal inflammation and morphology of ASA-induced intestinal injury rats with or without MOS administration were investigated. In MOS deficient rats, oral treatment of ASA causes severe intestine damage and immunological dysfunction. In a rat model, 600 mg/kg BW MOS can lower the expression of inflammatory markers and effectively increase liver index, serum interleukin-2 (IL-2), lysozyme contents, intestinal secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) and mucus volume, intestinal villus height, crypt depth and villus height/crypt depth in comparison to the ASA group. These results imply that providing rats with MOS at the appropriate dosage can significantly improve their immune system and successfully shield the intestines from ASA damage. MOS is therefore expected to be a promising gut immunopotentiator for enhancing intestinal health in animals.