title: Effect of Clostridium butyricum on the formation and dissolution of gallstones in experimental cholesterol cholelithiasis.
abstract: The effect of oral administration of Clostridium butyricum Miyairi on the formation and dissolution of gallstones was examined in a mouse model of cholesterol cholelithiasis, in comparison with that of chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA). A diet containing cholesterol and sodium cholate was used as a lithogenic diet. The feeding of the lithogenic diet containing 1.0 X 10(8) cells of this bacterium per g for five weeks prevented the formation of gallstones, resulted in lower values of the gallstone index, incidence and cholesterol content of gallstones than those of untreated group by 46, 43 and 46%, in order. Furthermore, after mice were maintained on the lithogenic diet for five weeks, subsequent bacterial treatment exhibited a marked gallstone dissolution effect. The feeding of 10(8) cells/g was effective for the prevention of gallstone formation and dissolution of gallstones, but that of 10(6) cells/g was not significantly effective. The gallstone index of the bacterium-treated group was lower than that of CDCA-treated group during the period of experiment, but there was no difference in the cholesterol content of gallstones between these two groups, which suggests a different mechanism of action of the bacterium from that of CDCA.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002635:Chenodeoxycholic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D002769:Cholelithiasis / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000378:metabolism*; D003015:Clostridium Infections / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR
chemical_list: D002635:Chenodeoxycholic Acid; D002784:Cholesterol