Wild-type Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 improves hyperuricemia by anaerobically degrading uric acid and maintaining gut microbiota profile of mice

Hyperuricemia is an important metabolic disease of humans. Limited clinical drugs such as allopurinol can alleviate hyperuricemia. Wild-type Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (EcN) has been used for over a century to treat various gastrointestinal disorders. However, little is known about the impacts of EcN on hyperuricemic mice. In this study, we identified an anaerobic uric acid metabolism pathway in EcN. It degraded 65.6 % uric acid in 24 h under anaerobic condition in vitro. In addition, oral administration of EcN and allopurinol reduced serum uric acid in hyperuricemic mice by 46 % and 37 %, respectively, compared to the control group. Further analysis showed that allopurinol changed the gut microbiota of mice. However, the microbiota of the EcN and control groups was similar. Histological observations suggested that EcN also ameliorated the intestinal and renal tissue damage in hyperuricemic mice. These results suggested that wild-type EcN may be an alternative method for hyperuricemic treatment.