Lactobacillus fermentum CECT5716 ameliorates high fat diet-induced obesity in mice through modulation of gut microbiota dysbiosis

Obesity is one of the main features of metabolic syndrome, where a low-grade chronic inflammation and gut dysbiosis contribute to the development of the related metabolic dysfunctions. Different probiotics have demonstrated beneficial effects on this condition, increasing the interest in the development of probiotic treatments. Lactobacillus fermentum CECT5716 has shown anti-inflammatory effects and capacity to modulate microbiota composition in different experimental models. In this study, L. fermentum CECT5716 was evaluated in a model of high fat diet-induced obesity in mice. It exerts anti-obesity effects, associated with its anti-inflammatory properties and amelioration of endothelial dysfunction and gut dysbiosis. The probiotic restores Akkermansia sp. abundance and reduced Erysipelotrichi class and Clostridium spp presence as well as increased Bacteroides proportion. In conclusion, this probiotic represents a very interesting approach. Our findings describe, for the first time, the ability of this probiotic to ameliorate experimental obesity through microbiome modulation, affecting different bacteria that have been reported to play a key role in the pathogenesis of obesity. Therefore, this suggests a potential use of L. fermentum CECT5716 in clinical practice, also taking into account that probiotic treatments have demonstrated to be relatively safe and well tolerated.