title: A small scale study on the effects of oral administration of the β-glucan produced by Aureobasidium pullulans on milk quality and cytokine expressions of Holstein cows, and on bacterial flora in the intestines of Japanese black calves.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The β-(1 → 3),(1 → 6)-D-glucan extracellularly produced by Aureobasidium pullulans exhibits immunomodulatory activity, and is used for health supplements. To examine the effects of oral administration of the β-(1 → 3),(1 → 6)-D-glucan to domestic animals, a small scale study was conducted using Holstein cows and newborn Japanese Black calves.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Holstein cows of which somatic cell count was less than 3 x 10⁵/ml were orally administered with or without the β-(1 → 3),(1 → 6)-D-glucan-enriched A. pullulans cultured fluid (AP-CF) for 3 months, and the properties of milk and serum cytokine expression were monitored. Somatic cell counts were not significantly changed by oral administration of AP-CF, whereas the concentration of solid non fat in the milk tended to increase in the AP-CF administered cows. The results of cytokine expression analysis in the serum using ELISA indicate that the expressions of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin (IL)-6 in all cows which were orally administered with AP-CF became slightly lower than that of control cows after the two-month treatment. On the other hand, IL-8 expression tended to indicate a moderately higher level in all treated cows after the three-month administration of AP-CF in comparison with that of the control cows. Peripartum Japanese Black beef cows and their newborn calves were orally administered with AP-CF, and bacterial flora in the intestines of the calves were analyzed by T-RFLP (terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism). The results suggest that bacterial flora are tendentiously changed by oral administration of AP-CF.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data indicated the possibility that oral administration of the β-(1 → 3),(1 → 6)-D- glucan produced by A. pullulans affects cytokine expressions in the serum of Holstein cows, and influences bacterial flora in the intestines of Japanese Black calves. The findings may be helpful for further study on the efficacies of oral administration of β-(1 → 3),(1 → 6)-D-glucans on domestic animals.
authors.affiliation: Aureo Science Co,, Ltd,, Hokudai Business Spring, North 21, West 12, Kita-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido 001-0021, Japan. iwai-atsushi@aureo.co.jp
authors.forename: Hirofumi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Uchiyama
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Iwai
authors.forename: Yukoh
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Asada
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Muramatsu
authors.forename: Shiho
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aoki
authors.forename: Koji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kawata
authors.forename: Kisato
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kusano
authors.forename: Koji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nagashima
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yasokawa
authors.forename: Mitsuyasu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Okabe
authors.forename: Tadaaki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Miyazaki
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001203:Ascomycota / Q000737:chemistry*; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics; D002417:Cattle; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D016207:Cytokines / Q000097:blood*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis / Q000235:genetics; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood; D016209:Interleukin-8 / Q000097:blood; D007422:Intestines / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000382:microbiology; D008892:Milk / Q000592:standards*; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; D013997:Time Factors; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000097:blood; D047071:beta-Glucans / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned; D016207:Cytokines; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D015850:Interleukin-6; D016209:Interleukin-8; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D047071:beta-Glucans