Butyrylated Starch Attenuates Antibiotic-Exacerbated Allergic Rhinitis by Restoring the Gut Microbiota and Barrier...

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is often exacerbated by antibiotic-induced gut dysbiosis. This study investigated whether butyrylated starch (BS) could mitigate vancomycin (VAN)-induced AR aggravation by restoring gut homeostasis. In a murine AR model (n = 5 per group), VAN administration significantly depleted the abundance of butyrate-producing bacteria (e.g., Clostridia and Lachnospiraceae), suppressed colonic butyrate levels (1.08 ± 0.36 vs. 8.20 ± 0.78 μg/g in controls), and impaired intestinal barrier integrity, thereby worsening nasal symptoms (sneezing frequency: 4.40 ± 1.14 vs. 2.40 ± 0.55 in the AR group). Intervention with BS, a targeted butyrate precursor, effectively reversed these changes by increasing the abundance of butyrogenic taxa, increasing butyrate production (22.86 ± 3.27 μg/g), upregulating the expression of tight junction proteins (Occludin-1, ZO-1, and Claudin-3), and increasing the number of splenic regulatory T (Treg) cells. Our findings demonstrate that BS ameliorates antibiotic-induced AR via coordinated restoration of the gut microbiota-barrier-immune axis, suggesting a novel dietary strategy for the management of allergic inflammation.