Table 5.

Plasma and tissue concentrations of monoamine neurotransmitters in Flinders Sensitive Line (FSL) rats after 10 weeks of vehicle^a or probiotic^b intake at two different doses

	Vehicle	109 [CFU d−1]	1010 [CFU d−1]	p c
	(n = 7)	(n = 7)	(n = 8)
EDTA plasma; nmol L−1
Norepinephrine	40.9 ± 13.3	27.2 ± 6.60	42.7 ± 12.1	0.015d , e
Dopamine	19.2 ± 2.94	14.5 ± 2.61	13.2 ± 4.01	0.006f
DOPAC	15.3 ± 3.52	13.1 ± 3.18	16.5 ± 5.49	0.306
5‐HT	1174 ± 789	1240 ± 712	1329 ± 699	0.920
5‐HIAA	19.1 ± 8.36	16.1 ± 4.30	15.1 ± 2.50	0.494d
Hippocampal extract [nmol g−1 tissue]
Norepinephrine	1.40 ± 0.13	1.51 ± 0.20	1.33 ± 0.26	0.266
Dopamine	0.02 ± 0.004	0.03 ± 0.01	0.02 ± 0.01	0.244
DOPAC	0.01 ± 0.003	0.01 ± 0.01	0.01 ± 0.001	0.243d
5‐HT	0.40 ± 0.06	0.43 ± 0.10	0.40 ± 0.09	0.814
5‐HIAA	0.39 ± 0.14	0.34 ± 0.07	0.33 ± 0.09	0.515
Prefrontal cortex extract [nmol g−1 tissue]
Norepinephrine	0.91 ± 0.14	0.88 ± 0.09	0.84 ± 0.13	0.620
Dopamine	0.66 ± 0.61	0.27 ± 0.18	0.49 ± 0.41	0.383d
DOPAC	0.37 ± 0.31	0.19 ± 0.10	0.31 ± 0.29	0.601d
5‐HT	0.42 ± 0.08	0.36 ± 0.06	0.38 ± 0.13	0.511
5‐HIAA	0.42 ± 0.15	0.37 ± 0.06	0.34 ± 0.08	0.296d

Data are presented as mean ± SD.

^aVehicle treatment consisted of xylitol, maize‐derived maltodextrin, plum flavor, and malic acid.

^bProbiotic treatment additionally included Lactobacillus helveticus R0052 and Bifidobacterium longum R0175.

^c p‐Values were determined with the use of a one‐way ANOVA test followed by Dunnett's post‐hoc test when the ANOVA was significant.

^d p‐Values were determined with the use of a one‐way ANOVA test performed on log‐transformed data.

^ePost‐hoc comparison of vehicle versus 10⁹ CFU d⁻¹ (p = 0.033).

^fPost‐hoc comparison of vehicle versus 10⁹ CFU d⁻¹ (p = 0.027), vehicle versus 10¹⁰ CFU d⁻¹ (p = 0.004).

5‐HIAA, 5‐hydroxyindoleacetic acid; 5‐HT, 5‐hydroxytryptamine (serotonin); DOPAC, 3,4‐dihydroxyphenylacetic acid.