{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T15:21:03Z","timestamp":1787066463163,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":40,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"19","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,29]],"date-time":"2025-09-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1759104000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Inner Mongolia National Center of Technology Innovation for Dairy Co., Ltd.","award":["2023-KFKT-12"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2023-KFKT-12"]}]},{"name":"Inner Mongolia National Center of Technology Innovation for Dairy Co., Ltd.","award":["2024-KFKT-007"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024-KFKT-007"]}]},{"name":"Inner Mongolia National Center of Technology Innovation for Dairy Co., Ltd.","award":["2024-QNJJ-010"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024-QNJJ-010"]}]},{"name":"Development Program of Shaanxi Province","award":["2023-ZDLNY-35"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2023-ZDLNY-35"]}]},{"name":"Zhaotong City Liu Zhigang Expert Workstation","award":["2024 ZTYX07"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024 ZTYX07"]}]},{"name":"Shaanxi Laboratory of Arid Area Agriculture","award":["2024ZY-JCYJ-02-44"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024ZY-JCYJ-02-44"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.mdpi.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Infant diarrhea is a major global cause of morbidity and mortality. While Bifidobacterium is linked to diarrhea, its preventive effects, underlying mechanisms, and potential synergistic benefits with prebiotics remain unclear. The objective of this study was to explore the efficacy of a synbiotic composed of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 (BB-12) and 2\u2032-fucosyllactose (2\u2032-FL) in alleviating infant diarrhea. Methods: One-week-old C57BL\/6J mice were used to construct a model of infant diarrhea via infection with enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) O127. Mice were administered BB-12 (108 CFU per mouse), 2\u2032-FL (1 g\/kg), or their combination (synbiotic) for three consecutive weeks. Results: Administration of the synbiotic not only markedly improved diarrhea, anxiety-like behavior, colon inflammation, and gut barrier function but also positively reshaped the microbial community. This was achieved through a significant rise in short-chain fatty acid (SCFA)-producing bacteria (e.g., Akkermansia and Paraprevotella), a rise in fecal SCFAs, and a reduction in harmful bacteria such as Escherichia.\u00a0Conclusions: The synbiotic effectively relieves EPEC-induced infant diarrhea by regulating gut microbiota composition and metabolic functions. These findings highlight its potential as a dietary intervention in infant diarrhea and provide new insights into infant health applications.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu17193099","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,30]],"date-time":"2025-09-30T08:21:51Z","timestamp":1759220511000},"page":"3099","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["A Synbiotic of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 and 2\u2032-FL Alleviate Infant Diarrhea and Anxiety-like Behaviors via Gut Microbiota Modulation in an EPEC O127 Infection Model"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Zhuo","family":"Liu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China"},{"name":"Research and Development Center, Xi\u2019an Yinqiao Dairy (Group) Co., Ltd., Xi\u2019an 710075, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wenxiu","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ning","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research and Development Center, Xi\u2019an Yinqiao Dairy (Group) Co., Ltd., Xi\u2019an 710075, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0006-4600-608X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jinkuan","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Qianxu","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mengzhen","family":"Jia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xiaorui","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Bo","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nan","family":"Sheng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Nutrition Research Institute, Junlebao Dairy Group Co., Ltd., 36 Shitong Road, Shijiazhuang 050221, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6863-6561","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Zhigang","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China"},{"name":"Shenzhen Research Institute, Northwest A&F University, Shenzhen 518000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"430","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(14)61698-6","article-title":"Global, regional, and national causes of child mortality in 2000\u201313, with projections to inform post-2015 priorities: An updated systematic analysis","volume":"385","author":"Liu","year":"2015","journal-title":"Lancet"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2045","DOI":"10.1053\/j.gastro.2018.03.067","article-title":"Advances in Evaluation of Chronic Diarrhea in Infants","volume":"154","author":"Thiagarajah","year":"2018","journal-title":"Gastroenterology"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"209","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(13)60844-2","article-title":"Burden and aetiology of diarrhoeal disease in infants and young children in developing countries (the Global Enteric Multicenter Study, GEMS): A prospective, case-control study","volume":"382","author":"Kotloff","year":"2013","journal-title":"Lancet"},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1420","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1365-2958.2011.07661.x","article-title":"Enteropathogenic and enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli: Even more subversive elements","volume":"80","author":"Wong","year":"2011","journal-title":"Mol. 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