Specific Dietary Oligosaccharides Increase Th1 Responses in a Mouse Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection Model

Breast feeding reduces the risk of developing severe respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections in infants. In addition to maternal antibodies, other immune-modulating factors in human milk contribute to this protection. Specific dietary prebiotic oligosaccharides, similar to oligosaccharides present in human milk, were evaluated in a C57BL/6 mouse RSV infection model. During primary RSV infection, increased numbers of RSV-specific CD4⁺ T cells producing gamma interferon (IFN-γ) were found in the lungs at days 8 to 10 postinfection in mice receiving diet containing short-chain galactooligosacharides, long-chain fructooligosaccharides, and pectin-derived acidic oligosaccharides (termed scGOS/lcFOS/pAOS). In a Th2-skewed formalin-inactivated (FI)-RSV vaccination model, the prebiotic diet reduced RSV-specific Th2 cytokine (interleukin-4 IL-4], IL-5, and IL-13)-producing CD4⁺ T cells in the lung and the magnitude of airway eosinophilia at day 4 and 6 after infection. This was accompanied by a decreased influx of inflammatory dendritic cells (CD11b⁺/CD11c⁺) and increased numbers of IFN-γ-producing CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T cells at day 8 after viral challenge. These findings suggest that specific dietary oligosaccharides can influence trafficking and/or effector functions of innate immune, CD4⁺, and CD8⁺ T cell subsets in the lungs of RSV-infected mice. In our models, scGOS/lcFOS/pAOS had no effect on weight but increased viral clearance in FI-RSV-vaccinated mice 8 days after infection. The increased systemic Th1 responses potentiated by scGOS/lcFOS/pAOS might contribute to an accelerated Th1/Th2 shift of the neonatal immune system, which might favor protective immunity against viral infections with a high attack rate in early infancy, such as RSV.