The environment of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract is an extremely complex system made up of not only host cells, but also many beneficial microbes. Disruption of this environment can often lead to disorders and health issues. To help balance this system, probiotics have often been administered to both humans and animals, such as livestock. This study aimed to determine what beneficial effects a novel strain of Enterobacter cloacae, strain JD6301, could offer to a host in the presence of an enteric infection with E. coli O157:H7. Upon administration of JD6301, supplemented animals had overall less E. coli present in the colon and caecum. Moreover, these animals shed more E. coli than control groups. Supplemented animals also had increased concentrations of serum triglycerides one day prior to challenge. Together, these data suggest that Enterobacter cloacae JD6301 could perform as a novel probiotic providing energy and protection to the host.

No description available.

Probiotics confer health benefits through many mechanisms including modulation of the gut immune system. Gut mucosal macrophages play a pivotal role in driving mucosal immune responses. The local environment and macrophage subset determine immune response: tolerance, associated with an M2-like, regulatory macrophage phenotype and inflammatory activation with an M1-like phenotype. The aims of this study were firstly to investigate the immunomodulatory effects of a panel of heat-killed (HK) probiotic bacteria and their secreted proteins (SP) of Bifidobacterium breve (BB), Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LR), L. salivarius (LS), L. plantarum (LP), L. ferrmentum (LF), and L. casei strain Shirota (LcS) on cytokine production and TLR expression in monocultures of monocytes, macrophage subsets, and intestinal epithelial cells. Normally, mucosal gut macrophages resemble the M2 subset and fail to express CD14, a co-receptor for LPS signalling. Therefore, probiotic modulation of LPS-induced NF-kB activity and cytokine expression was investigated using a THP-1 monocyte-derived reporter cell line, model of CD14 hi / lo M1 and M2 macrophages. Secondly, a transwell co-culture system was developed to investigate probiotic modulation of macrophage-influenced epithelial barrier function. Parameters investigated included cytokine, TLR and hBD-2 expression, TEER and IHC staining of the tight junction protein, ZO-1. Probiotics selectively modulated monocyte and macrophage subset cytokine expression. Probiotics (HK and SP) suppress CD14 lo , augment CD14 hi M1, and differentially regulated TNF-α production in M2s. M2 macrophage IL-6 production was suppressed by both HK and SPs, and differentially regulated in CD14 lo and CD14 hi M1s. NF-κB activation failed to parallel probiotic regulation of TNF-α and IL-6. Probiotics (HK-LF and HK-LcS) selectively modulated both endogenous and exogenous TNF-α and IL-10, as well as their induction of epithelial cell expression of TLR and hBD-2. Epithelial expression of TEER, ZO-1 and the endogenous TLR signal regulator, Tollip, were suppressed upon co-culture with pro-inflammatory M1 macrophages paralleled by a suppression of IL-10 and up-regulation of TNF-α and IL-8. In the presence of LPS, HK-LF enhanced TEER, ZO-1 and partially rescued Tollip expression, whereas HK-LcS had no effect on TEER and ZO-1 and displayed a weaker rescue effect on Tollip compared with LF. In the M2/epithelial cell co-culture, both probiotics enhanced TEER and ZO-1 in the presence of LPS, whilst displaying a differential modulation of Tollip, dependant on the format of probiotic (HK or SP). In conclusion, probiotic strains can differentially exert immune activatory or suppressive functions and immunomodulation is determined by strain, inflammatory environment, and mucosal macrophage effector phenotype. Future probiotic development must consider prophylactic use in healthy individuals or therapeutic treatment of defined pathological conditions, strain-specific effects, gut mucosal integrity, and immune phenotype of mucosal macrophages.

No description available.

As concerns regarding the growing human population, rising seafood demand, and up to present limited success of fisheries management intensify, aquaculture is increasingly posited as a means to more efficiently produce seafood commodities. However, aquaculture expansion raises contentious issues itself. The current study addresses a number of these issues in attempts to improve hatchery production and related activities. Investigation of less-harmful chemotherapeutants for disease reduction at the egg stage could lead to improved hatchery microbial management, increased survival during early larval stages, increased efficacy of bacterial probiotic incorporation, and reductions in disease transfer between hatcheries and locations. Attempts to surface sterilize and disinfect cobia Rachycentron canadum eggs with 3 and 2% hydrogen peroxide solutions significantly reduced survival through the yolk-sac larvae stage. Furthermore, timing of treatment application at differing stages of egg development was found to significantly impact survival, highlighting the importance of this compounding factor. Bacterial probiotics can remediate water quality, reduce target host stress, and improve survival and population growth rates of live feed organisms. Two of the following studies investigated the benefits of incorporation of a Bacillus spp. probiotic blend in aquaculture activities. During closed container mock shipment of yellowfin tuna Thunnus albacares yolk-sac larvae, significant reductions in total ammonia nitrogen resultant from probiotic incorporation were observed. Furthermore, significantly reduced dissolved oxygen utilization might have resulted from stress reduction, as suggested by a non-significant lower degree in the breakdown of osmoregulation of the larvae. Incorporation of probiotics within rotifer Brachionus plicatilis cultures resulted in significantly higher daily mean populations, significantly lower population variability among replicates, and non-coincident logistic population growth regressions which yielded higher population growth rates and system carrying capacities. Broodstock management should not only maximize quantity of reproductive output, but quality as well. Significant increases in cobia egg diameter with increasing broodstock female age were detected, as well as significant increases in egg diameter with decreasing salinity. Confirmation of potentially increased larval growth rates resultant from increased energy stores of larger eggs when produced by older females, as demonstrated in other species, is warranted. Attempts to find production parameters which maximize cobia larval growth and survival would lead to increased sustainability via reducing demand for wild-collected Artemia and economic efficiency. Gaps in knowledge for achieving this goal continue to exist, but conclusions drawn from analysis of multiple production scale trials indicate temperatures of 29-31 °C maximize growth and survival. Improvement in sampling design and data analysis would increase statistical rigor and ease comparability of larvicultures outcomes across ranging influential factors. Further investigation of all of these matters is certainly warranted, although conclusions drawn could be effectively utilized to improve success of hatchery operations.

The medical management of ulcerative colitis in children often requires aggressive pharmacological therapy or colonic resection. We hypothesized that synbiotic therapy, consisting of <i>B. longum</i> R0175 and inulin would improve symptoms and quality of life (QOL) in children diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. Consenting pediatric subjects (8-18 years; n = 9) with ulcerative colitis in remission were provided synbiotic therapy, (Probiotic: <i>Bifidobacterium longum</i> R0175 2.0 x 1010 cfu/day; Prebiotic: 15 g/day of inulin) (n = 4) or placebo (maltodextrin + ascorbic acid capsule; 15 g/day of non-resistant maltodextrin) (n = 5) for ten months in a pilot study (Phase I). After ten months, the study was unblinded and synbiotic therapy was administered to eight pediatric subjects (Phase II). In attempt to increase sample size, three adult subjects with active UC were recruited and provided the synbiotic therapy (Phase III). In all phases of the research, QOL was measured using the Short Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (SIBDQ). The SIBDQ was administered at baseline and every two months. Subjects kept a daily records of symptoms (stool consistency and frequency, presence of blood and mucous, presence of abdominal pain and overall feeling). Phase I QOL scores were significantly better for those receiving the synbiotic therapy versus the placebo (p = 0.014). Severe symptoms occurred in 60% of the control subjects, where as subjects receiving synbiotic therapy did not experience severe symptoms (p = 0.032). Phase II QOL scores were significantly better post-treatment with synbiotic therapy (p=0.034). One subject (steroid dependant) was able to wean off Prednisone® while receiving the synbiotic therapy; she remained in remission and was symptom free for over 26 months. In Phase III, synbiotic therapy did not induce remission in the adult subjects with active UC. No adverse effects were reported.<p>Synbiotic therapy consisting of <i>Bifidobacterium longum</i> R0175 and inulin, when provided in addition to conventional treatment, appears to be a safe and effective strategy for managing pediatric ulcerative colitis in remission.Further clinical trials are warranted to confirm these preliminary results.

The use of probiotics and prebiotics has become a popular trend in the food industry. The main goal of this study was to produce a synbiot by encapsulating a probiotic and a prebiotic within a matrix that would provide sufficient protection to the probiotic against simulated gastric juice (SGJ). The ability of the probiotic, Bifidbacterium adolescentis, to grow on short chain fructooligosaccharides (FOS; DP 2-8, P95), inulin (DP 2-60, ST), and FOS/inulin mixture (DP 2-60, Syn), as well as glucose and a glucose-free maltooligosaccharide (MOS), were evaluated. Bifidobacterium adolescentis had a significantly higher specific growth rate on P95 (0.47 h-1), than glucose (0.40 h-1). Examination of the growth medium containing P95 and MOS by high performance anion exchange with pulsed amperometric detection (HPAE-PAD) revealed that B. adolescentis utilised the oligosaccharides to the same extent as the monosaccharides.<p> Bifidobacterium adolescentis was successfully encapsulated with and without P95 using extrusion and emulsion methods, at cell concentrations of 8-9 log colony forming units (CFU) mL-1. Capsules formed by the extrusion method with 1.0% alginate (AL), 4.0% pea protein isolate (PPI) + 0.5% AL, and 4.0% whey protein isolate (WPI) + 0.5% AL ranged in geometric mean diameter from 2.0 to 2.2 mm. Capsules formed by emulsion with 4.0% WPI + 0.5% AL had geometric mean diameter of 53 ìm. Extrusionbased encapsulated probiotics in either PPI + AL or WPI + AL showed improved survival in SGJ at pH 2.0 for 2.0 h with log CFU mL-1 reductions of 3.6 and 1.1, respectively. Free cells, AL extrusion-based and WPI + AL emulsion-based encapsulated probiotics showed no survival after 30 min in SGJ at pH 2.0. The addition of 1.0% (w/w) P95 to the PPI + AL capsules improved probiotic survival such that 1.0 log CFU mL-1 reduction was observed. The amount of P95 encapsulated ranged from 4.0 to 4.4 mg per gram of capsules.<p> The external surface of the PPI + AL capsules as examined by cold stage scanning electron microscopy (cryo-SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) was smooth with the presence of pores ranging in diameter from 0.25 to 1.00 ìm. The addition of P95 to the capsules had no significant effect on surface roughness as measured by AFM, but significantly increased the external capsule thickness. The internal structure of the PPI + AL capsules examined by cryo-SEM revealed a porous honeycomb-like structure, with inner pore diameters ranging between 13.0 and 21.9 ìm. Probiotic cells were found to be randomly dispersed on the surface and in the interior of the honeycomb pores. In contrast, the prebiotic was found to be distributed throughout the capsule as observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), indicating that it would be readily available to the probiotic as a carbon source

Aim of this study was to select environmental E. coli isolates that produced colicins against the swine pathogen E. coli K88+. In initial evaluation using a modified plate method with 18 colicinogenic E. coli constructs, colicins E3, E4, E5, E9, Ia, K and N were found to possess inhibitory activity against 12 ETEC K88+ strains. A total of 463 environmental isolates from cattle rumen, cattle feces, pig feces and hog manure-amended soil were screened for colicin production by a modified plate test. Further, colicinogenic isolates were screened for five toxin genes LT, STa, STb, VT1 and VT2 as well as K88 (F4) fimbriae using PCR reactions. Fourteen non-pathogenic isolates were subjected to characterization of colicin genes by PCR using 9 new primer sequences, antibiotic susceptibilities and substrate utilization. Two potential probiotic strains of E. coli, UM-2 and UM-7 which produced colicins that could utilize potato starch and inulin were selected for in-vitro competition with E. coli K88+ strain 2-12. In vitro competition between the synbiotics and E. coli K88+ revealed inhibition of E. coli K88+. Based on the present in vitro studies it could be concluded that carefully selected potential synbiotics should be further studied for their role in protecting piglets from post-weaning diarrhea without antibiotics. / October 2007

The medical management of ulcerative colitis in children often requires aggressive pharmacological therapy or colonic resection. We hypothesized that synbiotic therapy, consisting of <i>B. longum</i> R0175 and inulin would improve symptoms and quality of life (QOL) in children diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. Consenting pediatric subjects (8-18 years; n = 9) with ulcerative colitis in remission were provided synbiotic therapy, (Probiotic: <i>Bifidobacterium longum</i> R0175 2.0 x 1010 cfu/day; Prebiotic: 15 g/day of inulin) (n = 4) or placebo (maltodextrin + ascorbic acid capsule; 15 g/day of non-resistant maltodextrin) (n = 5) for ten months in a pilot study (Phase I). After ten months, the study was unblinded and synbiotic therapy was administered to eight pediatric subjects (Phase II). In attempt to increase sample size, three adult subjects with active UC were recruited and provided the synbiotic therapy (Phase III). In all phases of the research, QOL was measured using the Short Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (SIBDQ). The SIBDQ was administered at baseline and every two months. Subjects kept a daily records of symptoms (stool consistency and frequency, presence of blood and mucous, presence of abdominal pain and overall feeling). Phase I QOL scores were significantly better for those receiving the synbiotic therapy versus the placebo (p = 0.014). Severe symptoms occurred in 60% of the control subjects, where as subjects receiving synbiotic therapy did not experience severe symptoms (p = 0.032). Phase II QOL scores were significantly better post-treatment with synbiotic therapy (p=0.034). One subject (steroid dependant) was able to wean off Prednisone® while receiving the synbiotic therapy; she remained in remission and was symptom free for over 26 months. In Phase III, synbiotic therapy did not induce remission in the adult subjects with active UC. No adverse effects were reported.<p>Synbiotic therapy consisting of <i>Bifidobacterium longum</i> R0175 and inulin, when provided in addition to conventional treatment, appears to be a safe and effective strategy for managing pediatric ulcerative colitis in remission.Further clinical trials are warranted to confirm these preliminary results.

The use of probiotics and prebiotics has become a popular trend in the food industry. The main goal of this study was to produce a synbiot by encapsulating a probiotic and a prebiotic within a matrix that would provide sufficient protection to the probiotic against simulated gastric juice (SGJ). The ability of the probiotic, Bifidbacterium adolescentis, to grow on short chain fructooligosaccharides (FOS; DP 2-8, P95), inulin (DP 2-60, ST), and FOS/inulin mixture (DP 2-60, Syn), as well as glucose and a glucose-free maltooligosaccharide (MOS), were evaluated. Bifidobacterium adolescentis had a significantly higher specific growth rate on P95 (0.47 h-1), than glucose (0.40 h-1). Examination of the growth medium containing P95 and MOS by high performance anion exchange with pulsed amperometric detection (HPAE-PAD) revealed that B. adolescentis utilised the oligosaccharides to the same extent as the monosaccharides.<p> Bifidobacterium adolescentis was successfully encapsulated with and without P95 using extrusion and emulsion methods, at cell concentrations of 8-9 log colony forming units (CFU) mL-1. Capsules formed by the extrusion method with 1.0% alginate (AL), 4.0% pea protein isolate (PPI) + 0.5% AL, and 4.0% whey protein isolate (WPI) + 0.5% AL ranged in geometric mean diameter from 2.0 to 2.2 mm. Capsules formed by emulsion with 4.0% WPI + 0.5% AL had geometric mean diameter of 53 ìm. Extrusionbased encapsulated probiotics in either PPI + AL or WPI + AL showed improved survival in SGJ at pH 2.0 for 2.0 h with log CFU mL-1 reductions of 3.6 and 1.1, respectively. Free cells, AL extrusion-based and WPI + AL emulsion-based encapsulated probiotics showed no survival after 30 min in SGJ at pH 2.0. The addition of 1.0% (w/w) P95 to the PPI + AL capsules improved probiotic survival such that 1.0 log CFU mL-1 reduction was observed. The amount of P95 encapsulated ranged from 4.0 to 4.4 mg per gram of capsules.<p> The external surface of the PPI + AL capsules as examined by cold stage scanning electron microscopy (cryo-SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) was smooth with the presence of pores ranging in diameter from 0.25 to 1.00 ìm. The addition of P95 to the capsules had no significant effect on surface roughness as measured by AFM, but significantly increased the external capsule thickness. The internal structure of the PPI + AL capsules examined by cryo-SEM revealed a porous honeycomb-like structure, with inner pore diameters ranging between 13.0 and 21.9 ìm. Probiotic cells were found to be randomly dispersed on the surface and in the interior of the honeycomb pores. In contrast, the prebiotic was found to be distributed throughout the capsule as observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), indicating that it would be readily available to the probiotic as a carbon source