ACE-Inhibitory Activity of Whey Proteins Fractions Derived of Fermentation by Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG and Streptococcus thermophilus SY-102.

Many studies have reported the benefits of probiotic microorganisms and the production of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. Determining the proteolytic and ACE inhibition capacities during whey fermentation was the goal of the study. Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG, Streptococcus thermophilus SY-102, and both bacteria together were initially inoculated into whey, reaching an initial concentration of 108 CFU per milliliter in each fermentation system. Through the use of TNBS, SDS-PAGE, and SEC-HPLC methods, the proteolytic profile was examined. An in vitro investigation was performed to test the ACE inhibition capacity. With S. thermophilus, the logarithmic phase of microbial development was shorter than with L. rhamnosus (6 and 12 h, respectively). The logarithmic phase in the co-culture fermentation, however, was extended to 24 h. There were no significant differences in pH between the fermentations. However, the co-culture had a greater concentration of protein hydrolysis (453 ± 0.06 µg/mL), as indicated by the amount of free amino groups. Similarly, this fermentation produced more low molecular weight peptides. The higher inhibition activity, which increased at the conclusion of the fermentation with the co-culture and reached 53.42%, was influenced by the higher peptide synthesis. These findings highlighted the significance of creating useful co-culture products.

Human milk oligosaccharides as bioactive compounds in infant formula: recent advances and trends in synthetic methods.

Human milk oligosaccharides (HMO) have attracted great interest in recent years due to their role in boosting infants and adults health. According to several in vitro, in vivo and clinical studies, gastrointestinal and immune physiological systems benefit the most from HMO intake. Other organ systems, such as the respiratory, central nervous, circulatory, locomotor, and urinary systems have also been found to be affected by the HMO consumption in the recent decade. Due to their positive impact on human health, the incorporation of HMO into the infant formula or other functional foods has become highly desirable. Currently, their large-scale production is limited to 2'-fucosyllactose (2'FL) and lacto-N-neotetraose (LNnT) that are obtained through fermentation and added to the infant formula as fortifiers. Fewer advances have been made for other HMO to reach the industrial scale synthesis. The present paper summarizes the latest research on HMO in terms of their health benefits and synthetic methodologies, with the overall aim to establish the current status and trends in both fields.

Impact of the Gut Microbiota Balance on the Health-Disease Relationship: The Importance of Consuming Probiotics and Prebiotics.

Gut microbiota is a group of microorganisms that are deposited throughout the entire gastrointestinal tract. Currently, thanks to genomic tools, studies of gut microbiota have pointed towards the understanding of the metabolism of important bacteria that are not cultivable and their relationship with human homeostasis. Alterations in the composition of gut microbiota could explain, at least in part, some epidemics, such as diabetes and obesity. Likewise, dysbiosis has been associated with gastrointestinal disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, and even cancer. That is why several studies have recently been focused on the direct relationship that these types of conditions have with the specific composition of gut microbiota, as in the case of the microbiota-intestine-brain axis. In the same way, the control of microbiota is related to the diet. Therefore, this review highlights the importance of gut microbiota, from its composition to its relationship with the human health-disease condition, as well as emphasizes the effect of probiotic and prebiotic consumption on the balance of its composition.

Size exclusion chromatography (SEC-HPLC) as an alternative to study thrombin inhibition.

In vitro analysis of anticoagulant compounds with a potential use as antithrombotic drugs, has been traditionally performed using techniques like spectrophotometry, turbidimetry, as well as electrochemical and clinical assays. Although, these techniques have some disadvantages such as: the inability to measure the total biological activity of thrombin, interferences and, sometimes, the quantitative determination of the inhibition ratio is not accurate. In the present work, the conversion of fibrinogen to fibrin was monitored by molecular exclusion chromatography (SEC-HPLC) in three different reaction systems. An inhibition percentage of 43.19±2.02% was obtained using heparin as an anticoagulant, in addition to the determination of the percentage of heparin bonded to thrombin. This methodology has not been previously described and has high potential for the determination of anticoagulant capacity with higher precision, the determination of thrombin's total biological activity and the quantitative determination of the inhibition ratio.