The study, co-authored and part funded by ingredient manufacturer Groupe Berkem, highlighted the potential of Biombalance (BB) to support health and gut–brain communication and to protect against oxidative and inflammatory stress in the gut.
Supported by researchers from the University of Bordeaux and Bordeaux Sciences Agro, in France, the team assessed BB for its antimicrobial effects, its protective effects against oxidative and inflammatory stress in Caco-2 cells, and its effects on mice’ microbiota and gut homeostasis at two different doses (5 μg/mL and 10μg/mL).
“This study confirms the multifaceted nature of BB as a bioactive ingredient capable of inhibiting major pathogens such as H. pylori and S. aureus, favorably modulating the gut microbiota, acting on oxidative stress and inflammatory pathways, and, for the first time, activating key mechanisms of the gut–brain axis, particularly through enhanced GLP-1 signaling,” said Marie Chadan, global media relations & public affairs manager at Groupe Berkem.
Published in the journal Antioxidants, the data indicated the ingredient could effectively inhibited the growth of several pathogens, including Staphylococcus aureus CIP 20256 and Helicobacter pylori P12, while preserving key commensal bacteria essential for intestinal health, such as Akkermansia muciniphila DSM 22959 and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299v.
In a healthy mouse model, the intervention led to increased expression of genes involved in intestinal barrier homeostasis at both doses.
At the lower dose, it led to increased occludin, a transmembrane protein that regulates the permeability of epithelial and endothelial barriers. And at a higher dose, it led to an increased expression of ‘tight junction proteins’ zonula occludens-1 and claudin, as well as decreased expression of inflammatory markers such as IL-6.
In the liver, the extract modulated genes linked to oxidative stress and inflammation, including IL-10 at the highest dose and superoxide dismutase at the lowest dose.
Chadan noted the intervention further influenced key gut–brain axis mediators, including GLP-1, the GLP-1 receptor, and NPY.
“One of the most striking findings concerned the gut–brain axis. For the first time, a grape seed extract was shown to increase the expression of neuropeptide Y in the ileum and colon in a dose-dependent manner and to significantly enhance the expression of GLP-1 and its receptor.“
The GLP-1 hormone is key to regulating glycemic homeostasis, appetite, intestinal motility and barrier integrity.
“These results open promising perspectives for natural prebiotics targeting metabolic and neurological functions,” said Chadan.
Another important discovery was the stimulation of bacterial groups such as Desulfovibrio, involved in glutamate degradation, as excess intestinal glutamate has been associated with neuroinflammatory effects, mood and neurodegenerative disorders.
This recent study follows a previously published mouse colitis model paper that confirmed the prebiotic effect of Biombalance on Lactobacillus populations and its capacity to prevent inflammation and microbiota dysbiosis.
Chadan confirmed Groupe Berkem plans to conduct further studies to confirm the modulation of the GLP-1 pathway and its physiological consequences, to explore the impact on glutamate metabolism and neuroinflammation, and to validate these effects in additional in vivo models and ultimately in human clinical studies.
Source: Antioxidants; doi:10.3390/antiox14121484; “Biombalance: A Specific Oligomeric Procyanidin-Rich Grape Seed Extract as Multifunctional Ingredient Integrating Antibacterial, Antioxidant, and Anti-Inflammatory Activities with Beneficial Gut–Brain Axis Modulation." Authors: Mokrani, M. et al.
