Mucin-Derived O-Glycans Act as Endogenous Fiber and Sustain Mucosal Immune Homeostasis via Short-Chain Fatty Acid Production in Rat Cecum

OBJECTIVES: Intestinal mucins escape digestion and enter the large bowel where they are degraded by microbiome. To what extent and how mucins impact large-bowel physiology remain unclear. This study examined the large-bowel fermentation characteristics of mucins and mucin-derived O-glycan sugars and whether mucins and N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) affect gut immunity. METHODS: Mucin secretion from the terminal ileum was determined from feces of ileorectostomized male Wistar rats (age 6 weeks) fed AIN76-based control diet (CD) for 15 d (Expt. 1). Normal male Wistar rats (age 6 weeks; 4 weeks for Expt. 4) were fed CD ± porcine stomach mucin (PM) at 6 or 12g/kg diet, equivalent to 1.5 and 3 times daily mucin secretion, for 14 d (Expt. 2); CD ± GlcNAc, fucose, or N-acetylneuraminic acid at 10g/kg diet for 14 d (Expt. 3); or CD ± PM (15 g/kg diet) or GlcNAc (10 g/kg diet) for 29 d (Expt. 4). Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), microbial composition, and cecal O-glycan content were assessed. IgA(+) plasma and regulatory T cells and inflammatory cytokine expression in the cecum were evaluated (Expt. 4). RESULTS: Daily mucin secretion corresponded to 43.2 mmol of O-glycans. PM was efficiently fermented in the cecum, as evidenced by comparable amounts of cecal O-glycans between groups. PM-fed rats harbored more mucin-degrading bacteria. Cecal SCFA concentrations, particularly n-butyrate, were higher in 12g/kg PM diet-fed rats versus CD (P