ABSTRACT
Objective To explore the effects of application of probiotics on intestinal flora and related cytokines in infants with cholestatic liver disease.Methods (1) Eighty-four infants with cholestatic liver disease had been hospitalized from October 2010 to June 2011 in the First Hospital of Guangxi Medical University.The infants with cholestatic liver disease were randomly divided into the probiotic intervention group and the non-probiotic intervention group.Quantification of intestinal bacteria was detected by SYBR Green Ⅰ real-time fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction,then the number of 3 kinds of bacteria before and after the treatment was compared.(2) The indices of liver function,blood ammonia,cholesterol were detected.The levels of serum transforming growth factor-β1,tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay.Results (1) The number of bifidobacterium,lactobacillus and bifidobacterium/escherichia coli (B/E) were significantly increased (all P < 0.01),whereas the number of escherichia coli was significantly decreased in the probiotic intervention group(P < 0.05),however,there were no differences in the non-probiotic intervention group(all P > 0.05).(2)The indices of total billirubin,direct billirubin,γ-Glutamyltransferase,total bile acid,alanine aminotransferase,blood ammonia,alkaline phosphatase were significantly improved after therapy in 2 groups (all P < 0.05).The levels of TNF-α and IL-6 were significantly decreased in the probiotic intervention group (t--7.31,P =0.00;t =-2.90,P =0.01),but there were no differences in the non-probiotic intervention group.The level of BA was significantly decreased in the probiotic intervention group than the non probiotic intervention group (t =-8.37,P =0.00).(3) The B/E value were significantly inverse correlated with level of serum IL-6 (r =-0.796,P =0.01).Conclusions It may help to restore the intestinal flora and balance the immune function in infants with cholestatic liver disease after application of probiotics.