Bifidobacterium longum Subsp. infantis Promotes IgA Level of Growing Mice in a Strain-Specific and Intestinal Niche-Dependent Manner.

Throughout infancy, IgA is crucial for maintaining gut mucosal immunity. This study aims to determine whether supplementing newborn mice with eight different strains of Bifidobacterium longum subsp. infantis might regulate their IgA levels. The strains were gavaged to BALB/C female (n = 8) and male (n = 8) dams at 1-3 weeks old. Eight strains of B. longum subsp. infantis had strain-specific effects in the regulation of intestinal mucosal barriers. B6MNI, I4MI, and I10TI can increase the colonic IgA level in females and males. I8TI can increase the colonic IgA level in males. B6MNI was also able to significantly increase the colonic sIgA level in females. B6MNI, I4MI, I8TI, and I10TI regulated colonic and Peyer's patch IgA synthesis genes but had no significant effect on IgA synthesis pathway genes in the jejunum and ileum. Moreover, the variety of sIgA-coated bacteria in male mice was changed by I4MI, I5TI, I8TI, and B6MNI. These strains also can decrease the relative abundance of Escherichia coli. These results indicate that B. longum subsp. infantis can promote IgA levels but show strain specificity. Different dietary habits with different strains of Bifidobacterium may have varying effects on IgA levels when supplemented in early infancy.

Production, Composition and Nutritional Properties of Organic Milk: A Critical Review.

Milk is one of the most valuable products in the food industry with most milk production throughout the world being carried out using conventional management, which includes intensive and traditional systems. The intensive use of fertilizers, antibiotics, pesticides and concerns regarding animal health and the environment have given increasing importance to organic dairy and dairy products in the last two decades. This review aims to compare the production, nutritional, and compositional properties of milk produced by conventional and organic dairy management systems. We also shed light on the health benefits of milk and the worldwide scenario of the organic dairy production system. Most reports suggest milk has beneficial health effects with very few, if any, adverse effects reported. Organic milk is reported to confer additional benefits due to its lower omega-6-omega-3 ratio, which is due to the difference in feeding practices, with organic cows predominantly pasture fed. Despite the testified animal, host, and environmental benefits, organic milk production is difficult in several regions due to the cost-intensive process and geographical conditions. Finally, we offer perspectives for a better future and highlight knowledge gaps in the organic dairy management system.

Dose-Response Efficacy and Mechanisms of Orally Administered Bifidobacterium breve CCFM683 on IMQ-Induced Psoriasis in Mice.

This study aimed to investigate the dose-response effect of Bifidobacterium breve CCFM683 on relieving psoriasis and its underlying patterns. Specifically, the expression of keratin 16, keratin 17, and involucrin were substantially decreased by administration of 109 CFU and 1010 CFU per day. Moreover, interleukin (IL)-17 and TNF-α levels were substantially decreased by 109 and 1010 CFU/day. Furthermore, the gut microbiota in mice treated with 109 or 1010 CFU/day was rebalanced by improving the diversity, regulating microbe interactions, increasing Lachnoclostridium, and decreasing Oscillibacter. Moreover, the concentrations of colonic bile acids were positively correlated with the effectiveness of the strain in relieving psoriasis. The gavage dose should be more than 108.42 CFU/day to improve psoriasis according to the dose-effect curve. In conclusion, CCFM683 supplementation alleviated psoriasis in a dose-dependent manner by recovering microbiota, promoting bile acid production, regulating the FXR/NF-κB pathway, diminishing proinflammatory cytokines, regulating keratinocytes, and maintaining the epidermal barrier function. These results may help guide probiotic product development and clinical trials in psoriasis.

Different Effects of Different Lactobacillus acidophilus Strains on DSS-Induced Colitis.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a worldwide chronic intestinal inflammatory immune-related disease. In this study, mice with dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis were used to evaluate the effect of Lactobacillus acidophilus on colitis. The results revealed that L. acidophilus CCFM137 and FAHWH11L56 show potential for relieving colitis symptoms, while L. acidophilus FGSYC48L79 did not show a protective effect. Moreover, L. acidophilus NCFM and FAHWH11L56 showed similar effects on various indicators of DSS-induced colitis, increasing the IL-10 and IL-17 in the colon, and modifying the CCL2/CCR2 axis and CCL3/CCR1 axis. For L. acidophilus CCFM137, its effects on colitis were different from the above two strains. Moreover, L. acidophilus FGSYC48L79 had negative effects on colitis by increasing the abundance of harmful bacteria in the gut microbiota and may promote the signaling of chemokines and their receptors. This may be related to its special genome compared to the other strains.

Effects of Bifidobacterium with the Ability of 2'-Fucosyllactose Utilization on Intestinal Microecology of Mice.

In breast milk, 2'-Fucosyllactose (2'FL) is the most abundant breast milk oligosaccharide and can selectively promote the proliferation of bifidobacteria. This study aimed to explore the effect of ifidobacterial with different utilization capacities of 2'FL on the intestinal microecology of mice. Furthermore, the effects of ifidobacterial with different 2'FL utilization capabilities on mice gut microbiota under the competitive pressure of 2'FL as a carbon source were explored. Compared with the control group, 2'FL, Bifidobacterium (B.) bifidum M130R01M51 + 2'FL, B. longum subsp. Longum CCFM752, and CCFM752 + 2'FL treatments significantly decreased the food intake. Moreover, the water intake, body weight, and fecal water content in all groups showed no significant difference compared with the control group. The combination of B. longum subsp. longum CCFM752 and 2'FL can significantly increase the levels of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory factors. B. bifidum M130R01M51 and mixed strains combined with 2'FL significantly increased the contents of acetic acid and isobutyric acid. The results showed that B. bifidum M130R01M51, B. breve FHuNCS6M1, B. longum subsp. longum CCFM752, and B. longum subsp. infantis SDZC2M4 combined with 2'FL significantly increased the species richness of the gut microbiota. Moreover, B. longum subsp. longum CCFM752 and B. longum subsp. infantis SDZC2M4 significantly increased the abundance of Faecalibaculum and Bifidobacterium, respectively. In conclusion, exploring the impact on intestinal microecology can provide theoretical guidance for the development of personalized prebiotics for different bifidobacteria, which has the potential to improve the ecological imbalance of infant gut microbiota.

Shared and Non-Shared sIgA-Coated and -Uncoated Bacteria in Intestine of Mother-Infant Pairs.

The infant gut microbiota is critical for promoting and maintaining early-life health. The study aimed to analyze the composition of sIgA-coated and sIgA-uncoated bacterial communities at genus level and lactobacilli and bifidobacterial communities at species level in human breast milk (HBM) and infant and maternal feces. Eleven pregnant women were recruited successfully. HBM; infant feces during colostrum, transition, and mature stages; and maternal feces within the mature stage were collected. sIgA-coated and sIgA-uncoated bacteria were separated with magnetic-activated cell sorting. Then, 16S rRNA sequencing, bifidobacterial groEL gene sequencing, and lactobacilli groEL gene sequencing were performed to analyze the bacterial community. PCoA revealed that the compositions of sIgA-coated and sIgA-uncoated bacteria were different among HBM and infant and maternal feces. Higher relative abundance of sIgA-uncoated Bifidobacterium was found in the three lactation stages in infant feces compared to the corresponding HBM, and a higher relative abundance of sIgA-uncoated Faecalibacterium was found in maternal feces compared to HBM and infant feces. For bifidobacterial community, sIgA-coated and sIgA-uncoated B. longum subsp. infantis and B. pseudocatenulatum was dominant in infant feces and maternal feces, respectively. The relative abundance of sIgA-uncoated B. longum subsp. infantis was significantly higher in infant feces compared to that in maternal feces. For the Lactobacillus community, L. paragasseri and L. mucosae were dominant in infant and maternal feces, respectively. HBM and infant and maternal feces showed distinct diversity and composition of both sIgA-coated and sIgA-uncoated bacteria at genus level. Infant and maternal feces showed similar composition of Bifidobacterium at species level. The same Bifidobacterium species could be detected both in sIgA-coated and -uncoated form. This article provided deeper understanding on the microbiota profile in HBM and infant and maternal feces.

A randomized, double blind, parallel, placebo-controlled study to investigate the efficacy of Lactobacillus paracasei N1115 in gut development of young children.

In this clinical trial, the safety and effectiveness of Lactobacillus paracasei N1115 (LP N1115) were investigated as a potential probiotic to enhance gut development in young children born by caesarean section. Infants and young children between the ages of 6 months and 3 years were administered with a probiotic consisting of LP N1115 strain (n = 30) or placebo supplement (n = 30) over an 8 weeks intervention. And the stool consistency, bowel habits, salivary cortisol, fecal microbiota, and short-chain fatty acid metabolism were investigated. Efficacy data were obtained from 58 participants who completed the study. Overall, the placebo functioned similarly to LP N1115 group in relation to stool consistency, gastrointestinal symptoms, salivary cortisol, and short-chain fatty acids. However, the scoring data relating to the 6-18 months subgroup receiving LP N1115 remained stable over 8 weeks in comparison to placebo. Analysis of the fecal microbiota using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing revealed that the phyla Firmicutes represented 62% of the microbial relative abundance in the feces of the subjects during the intervening period. No significant changes in alpha- or beta-diversity were noted between the placebo and LP N1115 groups overtime and at each time point. Differential abundance analysis indicated an increase in Lactobacillus in LP N1115 group at weeks 4 (p < .05) and 8 (p < .05) in comparison to the placebo group. These results suggest that probiotic supplementation with LP N1115 was well tolerated by the young children and subtle changes in the microbiome were noted throughout the intervention period.

Lactobacillus reuteri FYNLJ109L1 Attenuating Metabolic Syndrome in Mice via Gut Microbiota Modulation and Alleviating Inflammation.

Metabolic syndrome is caused by an excessive energy intake in a long-term, high-fat and/or high-sugar diet, resulting in obesity and a series of related complications, which has become a global health concern. Probiotics intervention can regulate the gut microbiota and relieve the systemic and chronic low-grade inflammation, which is an alternative to relieving metabolic syndrome. The aim of this work was to explore the alleviation of two different Lactobacillusreuteri strains on metabolic syndrome. Between the two L. reuteri strains, FYNLJ109L1 had a better improvement effect on blood glucose, blood lipid, liver tissue damage and other related indexes than NCIMB 30242. In particular, FYNLJ109L1 reduced weight gain, food intake and fat accumulation. Additionally, it can regulate the gut microbiota, increase IL-10, and reduce IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), as well as liver injury, and further reduce insulin resistance and regulate lipid metabolism disorders. In addition, it could modulate the gut microbiota, particularly a decreased Romboutsia and Clostridium sensu stricto-1, and an increased Acetatifactor. The results indicated that FYNLJ109L1 could improve metabolic syndrome significantly via alleviating inflammation and gut microbiota modulation.

Comparative Genomics and Specific Functional Characteristics Analysis of Lactobacillus acidophilus.

Lactobacillus acidophilus is a common kind of lactic acid bacteria usually found in the human gastrointestinal tract, oral cavity, vagina, and various fermented foods. At present, many studies have focused on the probiotic function and industrial application of L. acidophilus. Additionally, dozens of L. acidophilus strains have been genome sequenced, but there has been no research to compare them at the genomic level. In this study, 46 strains of L. acidophilus were performed comparative analyses to explore their genetic diversity. The results showed that all the L. acidophilus strains were divided into two clusters based on ANI values, phylogenetic analysis and whole genome comparison, due to the difference of their predicted gene composition of bacteriocin operon, CRISPR-Cas systems and prophages mainly. Additionally, L. acidophilus was a pan-genome open species with a difference in carbohydrates utilization, antibiotic resistance, EPS operon, surface layer protein operon and other functional gene composition. This work provides a better understanding of L. acidophilus from a genetic perspective, and offers a frame for the biotechnological potentiality of this species.

Colliding and interacting microbiomes and microbial communities - consequences for human health.

Living 'things' coexist with microorganisms, known as the microbiota/microbiome that provides essential physiological functions to its host. Despite this reliance, the microbiome is malleable and can be altered by several factors including birth-mode, age, antibiotics, nutrition, and disease. In this minireview, we consider how other microbiomes and microbial communities impact the host microbiome and the host through the concept of microbiome collisions (initial exposures) and interactions. Interactions include changes in host microbiome composition and functionality and/or host responses. Understanding the impact of other microbiomes and microbial communities on the microbiome and host are important considering the decline in human microbiota diversity in the developed world - paralleled by the surge of non-communicable, inflammatory-based diseases. Thus, surrounding ourselves with rich and diverse beneficial microbiomes and microbial communities to collide and interact with should help to diminish the loss in microbial diversity and protect from certain diseases. In the same vein, our microbiomes not only influence our health but potentially the health of those close to us. We also consider strategies for enhanced host microbiome collisions and interactions through the surrounding environment that ensure increased microbiome diversity and functionality contributing to enhanced symbiotic return to the host in terms of health benefit.

Antimicrobials for food and feed; a bacteriocin perspective.

Bacteriocins are natural antimicrobials that have been consumed via fermented foods for millennia and have been the focus of renewed efforts to identify novel bacteriocins, and their producing microorganisms, for use as food biopreservatives and other applications. Bioengineering bacteriocins or combining bacteriocins with multiple modes of action (hurdle approach) can enhance their preservative effect and reduces the incidence of antimicrobial resistance. In addition to their role as food biopreservatives, bacteriocins are gaining credibility as health modulators, due to their ability to regulate the gut microbiota, which is strongly associated with human wellbeing. Indeed the strengthening link between the gut microbiota and obesity make bacteriocins ideal alternatives to Animal Growth Promoters (AGP) in animal feed also. Here we review recent advances in bacteriocin research that will contribute to the development of functional foods and feeds as a consequence of roles in food biopreservation and human/animal health.

Functional food addressing heart health: do we have to target the gut microbiota?

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Health promoting functional food ingredients for cardiovascular health are generally aimed at modulating lipid metabolism in consumers. However, significant advances have furthered our understanding of the mechanisms involved in development, progression, and treatment of cardiovascular disease. In parallel, a central role of the gut microbiota, both in accelerating and attenuating cardiovascular disease, has emerged. RECENT FINDINGS: Modulation of the gut microbiota, by use of prebiotics and probiotics, has recently shown promise in cardiovascular disease prevention. Certain prebiotics can promote a short chain fatty acid profile that alters hormone secretion and attenuates cholesterol synthesis, whereas bile salt hydrolase and exopolysaccharide-producing probiotics have been shown to actively correct hypercholesterolemia. Furthermore, specific microbial genera have been identified as potential cardiovascular disease risk factors. This effect is attributed to the ability of certain members of the gut microbiota to convert dietary quaternary amines to trimethylamine, the primary substrate of the putatively atherosclerosis-promoting compound trimethylamine-N-oxide. In this respect, current research is indicating trimethylamine-depleting Achaea - termed Archeabiotics as a potential novel dietary strategy for promoting heart health. SUMMARY: The microbiota offers a modifiable target, which has the potential to progress or prevent cardiovascular disease development. Whereas host-targeted interventions remain the standard, current research implicates microbiota-mediated therapies as an effective means of modulating cardiovascular health.

Lactobacillus ruminis strains cluster according to their mammalian gut source.

BACKGROUND: Lactobacillus ruminis is a motile Lactobacillus that is autochthonous to the human gut, and which may also be isolated from other mammals. Detailed characterization of L. ruminis has previously been restricted to strains of human and bovine origin. We therefore sought to expand our bio-bank of strains to identify and characterise isolates of porcine and equine origin by comparative genomics. RESULTS: We isolated five strains from the faeces of horses and two strains from pigs, and compared their motility, biochemistry and genetic relatedness to six human isolates and three bovine isolates including the type strain 27780(T). Multilocus sequence typing analysis based on concatenated sequence data for six individual loci separated the 16 L. ruminis strains into three clades concordant with human, bovine or porcine, and equine sources. Sequencing the genomes of four additional strains of human, bovine, equine and porcine origin revealed a high level of genome synteny, independent of the source animal. Analysis of carbohydrate utilization, stress survival and technological robustness in a combined panel of sixteen L. ruminis isolates identified strains with optimal survival characteristics suitable for future investigation as candidate probiotics. Under laboratory conditions, six human isolates of L. ruminis tested were aflagellate and non-motile, whereas all 10 strains of bovine, equine and porcine origin were motile. Interestingly the equine and porcine strains were hyper-flagellated compared to bovine isolates, and this hyper-flagellate phenotype correlated with the ability to swarm on solid medium containing up to 1.8% agar. Analysis by RNA sequencing and qRT-PCR identified genes for the biosynthesis of flagella, genes for carbohydrate metabolism and genes of unknown function that were differentially expressed in swarming cells of an equine isolate of L. ruminis. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that Lactobacillus ruminis isolates have potential to be used in the functional food industry. We have also identified a MLST scheme able to distinguish between strains of L. ruminis of different origin. Genes for non-digestible oligosaccharide metabolism were identified with a putative role in swarming behaviour.

Catabolic flexibility of mammalian-associated lactobacilli.

Metabolic flexibility may be generally defined as "the capacity for the organism to adapt fuel oxidation to fuel availability". The metabolic diversification strategies used by individual bacteria vary greatly from the use of novel or acquired enzymes to the use of plasmid-localised genes and transporters. In this review, we describe the ability of lactobacilli to utilise a variety of carbon sources from their current or new environments in order to grow and survive. The genus Lactobacillus now includes more than 150 species, many with adaptive capabilities, broad metabolic capacity and species/strain variance. They are therefore, an informative example of a cell factory capable of adapting to new niches with differing nutritional landscapes. Indeed, lactobacilli naturally colonise and grow in a wide variety of environmental niches which include the roots and foliage of plants, silage, various fermented foods and beverages, the human vagina and the mammalian gastrointestinal tract (GIT; including the mouth, stomach, small intestine and large intestine). Here we primarily describe the metabolic flexibility of some lactobacilli isolated from the mammalian gastrointestinal tract, and we also describe some of the food-associated species with a proven ability to adapt to the GIT. As examples this review concentrates on the following species - Lb. plantarum, Lb. acidophilus, Lb. ruminis, Lb. salivarius, Lb. reuteri and Lb. sakei, to highlight the diversity and inter-relationships between the catabolic nature of species within the genus.

Bioactive peptides from muscle sources: meat and fish.

Bioactive peptides have been identified in a range of foods, including plant, milk and muscle, e.g., beef, chicken, pork and fish muscle proteins. Bioactive peptides from food proteins offer major potential for incorporation into functional foods and nutraceuticals. The aim of this paper is to present an outline of the bioactive peptides identified in the muscle protein of meat to date, with a focus on muscle protein from domestic animals and fish. The majority of research on bioactives from meat sources has focused on angiotensin-1-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory and antioxidant peptides.

Cloning and expression of a mureinolytic enzyme from the mycobacteriophage TM4.

In this study, we describe the characterization, cloning, expression and purification of the lysin A gene of the mycobacteriophage TM4. The gene TM4_gp29 (gp29) is a 1644-bp gene that codes for a 58.6-kDa protein and contains peptidoglycan recognition protein, Zn-binding and amidase catalytic domains. The gene was cloned into Escherichia coli using the 'His-Tag' pQE60 vector. After affinity chromatography-mediated purification, the protein was concentrated and visualized using sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Evidence of peptidoglycan-degrading activity was observed initially by a chloroform assay and later by conventional zymogram analysis.