International immunopharmacologyJun 21, 2019

Astragalus polysaccharides reduce inflammation and restore gut bacteria balance in mice infected with Salmonella

Gut-Brain Axis Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated Apr 4, 2026

Abstract

Astragalus polysaccharide (APS) significantly reduced the disease activity index scores in mice infected with Salmonella typhimurium.

APS attenuated weight loss and diarrhea caused by Salmonella typhimurium in BALB/c mice.
Liver and spleen indices, as well as serum ALT and AST levels, were significantly reduced by APS (P < 0.05).
Histological analysis showed that APS increased jejunum villus height and crypt depth while reducing inflammatory cell infiltration (P < 0.05).
APS enhanced the expression of tight junction proteins ZO-1, Occludin, and Claudin-1 in the jejunum.
16S rDNA analysis indicated that APS restored the populations of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium spp. to normal levels.
APS significantly decreased mRNA levels of proinflammatory cytokines and inhibited the expression of inflammatory mediators in the jejunum.

Simplified

Salmonella typhimurium (S. t.) is one of the main pathogens that causes acute gastroenteritis. To evaluate the anti-inflammatory mechanism of Astragalus polysaccharide (APS) in vivo and its influence on the intestinal flora, BALB/c mice were infected with S. t. to establish a model of diarrhea. The disease activity index (DAI) scores showed that APS attenuated S. t.-induced weight loss and diarrhea in mice. APS significantly reduced the index of the liver and spleen as well as the ALT and AST levels in serum (P < 0.05). Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) results indicated that APS significantly increased jejunum villus height and crypt depth and reduced the infiltration of inflammatory cells (P < 0.05). Additionally, APS increased the tight junction (TJ) proteins expression levels of ZO-1, Occludin and Claudin-1 in the jejunum. The results of 16S rDNA showed that APS significantly increased the number of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium spp. to normal levels (compared with the control group). In addition, APS significantly decreased the mRNA expression levels of the proinflammatory cytokines TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 and IL-17 in the jejunum (P < 0.01) as well as the proteins expression levels of COX-2 and iNOS (P < 0.05). Western blot confirmed that prefeeding with APS inhibited S. t.-induced expression of TLR4 and MyD88 in the jejunum and further inhibited nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activation, including the nuclear translocation of the p65 NF-κB subunit and the phosphorylation and degradation of IκB-α. This was the key to APS inhibition of the production of inflammatory factors and inflammatory mediators in the jejunum.

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Astragalus polysaccharides reduce inflammation and restore gut bacteria balance in mice infected with Salmonella

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