Growth Performance Parameters of Experimental Rats Fed Diets Containing Different Lipid Sources with or without Probiotics

• Naseem H. Al-Isawi 1*, Karkaz M. Thalij2 and Ghazwan M. salih3

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Our study aimed to investigate the effect of different lipid sources (animal and plant) on body weight and the relative weight of organs (heart, liver, kidney, and spleen) in male laboratory rats. It also aimed to evaluate the role of the probiotics Bifidobacterium bifidum and Bacillus coagulans in suppressing the potentially harmful metabolic effects of certain lipids. The experiment involved 65 male Albanian rats (average age: 2–3 months; average weight: 200–230 g). The rats were randomly assigned to 13 experimental groups, including a control group and groups fed diets supplemented with different lipid sources (cholesterol, fish oil, olive oil, and animal fats) alone or in combination with a continuous daily oral dose of the probiotics 1.5 × 10⁸ colony-forming units (CFU) twice daily for 28 days. The results showed significant differences (P≤0.05) in final weight and weight gain. The animal fat group, without the probiotic (Af), recorded the highest weight gain (2.48 ± 0.36 g), accompanied by a marked increase in the relative weights of organs, with the highest values ​​recorded for the heart (2.30 ± 0.02 g/100 g), liver (18.20 ± 3.30 g/100 g), and kidneys (3.80 ± 0.05 g/100 g). Conversely, the cholesterol group (Cho) had the highest spleen relative weight (2.26 ± 0.05 g/100 g). Furthermore, the intervention combining unsaturated oils with probiotics effectively curbed weight gain, resulting in a significant decrease in weight gain for the olive oil treatment with Bifi. bifidum (Oo+Bb) and the fish oil treatment with B. coagulans (Fo+Bc), amounting to 4.0 ± 0.12 g and 3.6 ± 0.02 g, respectively. This coincided with a significant reduction in liver and other organ hypertrophy. Specifically, the relative liver weight of the group treated with Bifi. bifidum-enriched fat (Af+Bb) decreased to 15.31 ± 2.58 g/100 g. These results demonstrate that the interaction between unsaturated oils and probiotics helps reduce visceral and tissue fat accumulation. It also helps mitigate the metabolic burden and pathological hypertrophy of major organs caused by high-fat diets.

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