Evaluation of Fermented Product, PS-B1, Obtained from Soybean Milk Using Lactic Acid Bacteria in a Stelic Animal Model (STAM™) of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis - A Preliminary Study

PS-B1 is a fermented product prepared from soybean milk using indigenous lactic acid bacteria of human origin. It has been demonstrated to possess liver-protective activities because of its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antifibrotic properties in vitro, and improvement of dyslipidemia in vivo. This study evaluated the effects of PS-B1 on high-fat diet induced nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in a validated Stelic Animal Model (STAM™) for this condition. Mice were treated orally once daily for 4 weeks vehicle (control), PS-B1 (30g/kg), or PS-B1 (50g/kg). The results show that compared to the control group, liver weights and plasma triglyceride values tended to decrease in the high-dose PS-B1 group. Histopathological analysis performed by hematoxylin and eosin staining displayed a milder deposition of lipid droplets in the livers of mice in the high-dose PS-B1 group than in livers of the control group. These results suggest that compared with the control group, the PS-B1 administration induced a decreasing trend in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease activity score in the treated groups, accompanied by a decrease in liver weights and liver/plasma triglyceride levels, implying a potential anti-steatosis effect of PS-B1.