PSV-B-23 - Metabolomic biomarker assessment of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentate in exercise-stressed Labrador Retrievers

Plasma metabolomic markers were evaluated in a population of 36 Labrador Retrievers (BW 31.32 ± 0.85 kg) studying the effects of a dietary Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation product (SCFP) at baseline and before and after two distance-defined exercise regimens (DDER; 6.4 km and 16.1 km). Canine subjects were blocked by BW and randomly assigned to one of two treatments: a control group receiving no supplement (CON) or a group receiving a single, daily oral dose of 250 mg SCFP. Each treatment group was comprised of 9 males and 9 females. During each DDER subjects were guided by an all-terrain vehicle and blood samples were collected at baseline and before and after each DDER. All metabolomic studies were performed blinded to treatment and DDER regimen. Metabolic signals were identified using untargeted nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectroscopy. A total of 31 differentially relevant metabolites reflecting host metabolism were selected from a large array of signals along with an additional 24 metabolites associated with microbial or microbial-host co-metabolism. Predictive classification was performed using statistical causal inference to derive weights for probability-weighted principal components analysis, and statistical significance was subsequently calculated by using subsampling. Metabolomics data stratified by sex yielded a trend for a highly accurate predictive classification (P < 0.10) and between treatments for subjects born before 2012 (P < 0.05). However, differential metabolomics data without adjustment for age did not reveal differences in metabolic profiles. This study provides preliminary evidence that SCFP may elicit differential plasma metabolites with known relationships with various immune cell and gut microbiome derived functions that appear to be age dependent. Further study is needed to provide direct evidence that SCFP exerts immunomodulatory effects consistent with decreasing chronic inflammation while balancing pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory responses.