Can probiotics prevent or improve common cold and influenza?

Fermentation of Clementine Juice with Lactobacillus salivarius spp. salivarius CECT 4063: Effect of Trehalose Addition and High-Pressure Homogenization on Antioxidant Properties, Mucin Adhesion, and Shelf Life

Fermentation of fruit juices with lactic acid bacteria enhances their antioxidant properties to a different extent depending on the microbial strain and the growing media composition, which can be modified by adding certain ingredients or applying a homogenization step. This study analyzed the effect of trehalose addition (10%, w/w) and homogenization at 100 MPa before or after Lactobacillus salivarius spp. salivarius CECT 4063 inoculation on the antioxidant profile and the microbiological properties of commercial clementine juice during 96 h fermentation. Antioxidant properties and viable cell count of 24 h-fermented juices during refrigerated storage (30 days at 4 °C) were also evaluated. Fermentation over 24 h reduced the microbial population and antioxidant content of clementine juice. Homogenizing the juice before inoculation enhanced the microbial growth but favored antioxidant degradation. Adding trehalose (10%, w/w) to the juice formulation and/or homogenizing at the fermented juice at 100 MPa for 24 h had a negative impact on viable counts and did not improve the microbial adhesion to intestinal mucosa. However, both techniques prevented antioxidant oxidation and cell decay during the storage of fermented juice under refrigeration, which should not last more than 15 days.

Exploring the antioxidant effect of Lactobacillus plantarum SCS2 on mice with type 2 diabetes

This study aimed to evaluate the antioxidant effect of Lactobacillus plantarum SCS2 (L. plantarum SCS2). After 1 week of acclimation, 120 male KM mice were divided into normal group (NG), model group (MG), solvent control group (KG), and different test groups (TG1, TG2, TG3) (n = 20/group) randomly. In the second week, except NG mice, other mice were given 0.2 ml 50 mg/kg (body weight) streptozocin (STZ) through intraperitoneal injection for 5 days. After successful modeling, NG and MG mice were fed normally, KG mice was given 0.5 ml 0.1 mol/L phosphate buffer saline (PBS) per day, TG1, TG2, and TG3 mice were given 0.5 ml suspension, intracellular content and heat-killed intracellular content of L. plantarum SCS2 per day for 9 weeks. Body weight and blood glucose were observed and recorded during intragastric administration. Glucose tolerance levels were measured at the twelfth week, then mice were sacrificed and the serum was collected to measure insulin (INS), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), malondialdehyde (MDA), reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidant enzymes. The results showed that the reduction of weight loss in TG1 and TG2 mice was observed, which was consistent with the blood glucose. At the same time, the INS level of TG1, TG2, and TG3 mice were increased and the HbA1c levels were decreased. Otherwise, the MDA and ROS content in the serum of TG1, TG2, and TG3 mice were decreased and the level of antioxidant enzymes was increased. Interestingly, the activity and content of antioxidant enzymes in TG2 group was the highest in the three test groups. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: The results of this study showed that L. plantarum SCS2 could effectively reduce blood glucose, relieve weight loss, improve INS deficiency, and also improve oxidative stress by increasing the activity of antioxidant enzymes. The findings suggest that L. plantarum SCS2 could improve diabetes-related symptoms by alleviating oxidative stress. In the future, people could promote the application of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) which is found in traditional foods with the ability of improving oxidative damage in food nutrition and related fields, so as to guide residents to form good dietary habits, and effectively prevent type 2 diabetes. Meanwhile, it also can enhance the edible value of traditional foods.

Spread of respiratory infections in student dormitories in China

OBJECTIVES

Student dormitory rooms in China are characterized by small space and high occupancy. This study aims to investigate infection rates for common colds and influenza among college students in a Chinese university and their association with the dormitory environment.

METHODS

This study involved two phases. In Phase I, 2978 students living in 998 dorm rooms in 12 buildings responded to a questionnaire survey on infections in four seasons. In Phase II, based on the data obtained from the questionnaire survey, we selected 242 dorm rooms to measure air temperature, relative humidity and CO₂ concentration in both summer and winter. Ventilation rates at night were calculated based on measured CO₂ concentrations.

RESULTS

We found that students had infections more often in winter, and in rooms with higher occupancy and dampness problems. The median value of the ventilation rate in dorm rooms in summer was 10.7 L/s per person, while it was 4.10 L/s per person in winter. There were significant associations between ventilation rate per person at night and common cold and influenza both in summer and winter (p < 0.05). A combination of dampness and low ventilation rate significantly increased the risk of common colds (adjusted odds ratios, AOR: 1.26-1.91) and influenza (AOR: 1.49-2.20).

CONCLUSION

College students living in a crowded dormitory room with low ventilation and dampness problems had more common colds and influenza infections.

The promising biological role of postbiotics derived from probiotic Lactobacillus species in reproductive health

Recent investigations have meaningfully developed our knowledge of the features of the reproductive microbiome/metabolome profile and their relations with host responses to offer an optimal milieu for the development of the embryo during the peri-implantation period and throughout pregnancy. In this context, the establishment of homeostatic circumstances in the Female Reproductive Tract (FRT), in various physiological periods, is a significant challenge, which appears the application of postbiotics can facilitate the achievement of this goal. So, currently, scientific literature confirms that postbiotics due to their antimicrobial, antiviral, and immunomodulatory properties can be considered as a novel biotherapeutic approach. Future investigation in this field will shed more translational mechanistic understanding of the interaction of the postbiotics derived from vaginal Lactobacilli with females' health and reproduction.

Optimization of prebiotic sucrose-free milk chocolate formulation by mixture design

The purpose of the current research was to determine optimal situation by applying Simplex lattice mixture design for the formulation of prebiotic sucrose-free milk chocolate. Chocolate samples were prepared using two different sugar alcohols containing xylitol and maltitol along with galactooligosaccharide as prebiotic substance. The effects of sugar alcohols and prebiotic blends on rheological attributes and some physical characteristics were assessed. The outcomes represented the high coefficient of determination (≥ 90%) of fitted models. The optimization of the variables indicated that using 20.857 g maltitol, 7.131 g xylitol and 5.012 g galactooligosaccharide generated the optimized chocolate with the highest desirability (1.00) without undesirable changes in the rheological and physical properties. Furthermore, the optimum formulation was prepared to validate the optimum model. The sensory evaluation of the optimized formulation of chocolate pleased the consumer needs.

Kluyveromyces marxianus as a Probiotic Yeast: A Mini-review

Background:

Yeasts play diverse roles in human life. Since ancient times, these micro organisms have been used to produce food products and beverages including bread and beer. Nowadays, the biotechnological products of yeast are some of the main components of commercial products.

Objective:

Some species of yeast such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Saccharomyces boulardii are recognized as probiotic yeast with extensive applications in the food and drug industries. However, certain species like Kluyveromyces marxianus are still not recognized as probiotic micro organisms despite their widespread industrial usage. In this study, the application of K. marxianus in preparing food and the medicinal product was reviewed in terms of its beneficial or harmful effects.

Methods:

Pub Med, Google Scholar, Scopus, and Science Direct databases were searched by using “Probiotics”, “Yeast”, and “Kluyveromyces marxianus”.

Results:

The findings suggest that K. marxianus can be recognized as a probiotic yeast species.

Conclusion:

It can be concluded that K. marxianus may be considered as a probiotic micro organism with a variety of commercial and medical applications.

The effect of probiotic supplementation during pregnancy on the interaction network of vaginal microbiome

AIM

To evaluate the effect of probiotic supplementation on the vaginal microbiome and provide the effective evidences for clinical management of pregnant women.

METHODS

A total of 28 healthy pregnant women at 32 weeks of gestation were enrolled. The women were divided randomly to the probiotic group where they were prescribed with 2 g combined probiotics daily (13 cases) during the third trimester of pregnancy or to the control group (15 cases) on a voluntary basis. Their vaginal samples were taken for analyzing microbiome with the 16S rDNA amplicon sequencing of V4 region.

RESULTS

There was no significant difference on the clinical characteristics between the probiotic and control groups. The complexity of vaginal microbial network increased from 32 weeks of gestation to antepartum. Lactobacillus was the dominant microbiota. The probiotic supplementation had no obvious influence on the structure of the vaginal microbiome, whereas the relationships of some pivotal vaginal microbiota at the genus level changed in the probiotic group.

CONCLUSION

The vaginal microbiome varied during the third trimester of pregnancy. The features of the vaginal microbiota after probiotic supplementation had shifted and the interaction network had the tendency to be loose. The probiotic supplementation may be useful in regulating the interaction network of vaginal microbiome.

Effects of influenza vaccine and sun exposure time against laboratory-confirmed influenza hospitalizations among young children during the 2012-13 to 2015-16 influenza seasons

BACKGROUND

Influenza is a major cause of acute respiratory infection burden worldwide, leading to many hospitalizations. An annual influenza vaccine is believed to be the best way to prevent influenza-related illnesses. We focused on the efficacies of other possible preventive measures such as increasing sun exposure time and dietary supplements to prevent these illnesses.

METHODS

We conducted a matched-pair case-control study along with the Taiwan Pediatric Infectious Disease Alliance. We included influenza-related hospitalized patients with age ranging from 6 months to 5 years during the 2012-2013, 2013-2014, 2014-2015, and 2015-2016 influenza seasons. The controls were comparable to cases in age, sex, and residential area and had no influenza-related hospitalization records in the same season. We extracted data from vaccination histories and got the patients' guardians to complete questionnaires. Data were analyzed using conditional logistic regression.

RESULTS

We enrolled 1514 children (421 influenza-infected cases and 1093 controls) in the study. We found seasonal influenza vaccination to be an independent protective factor against hospitalizations owing to influenza [p < 0.01; odds ratio (OR), 0.427; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.306-0.594]. Children with mean sun exposure time of >7 h/week had a significantly lower risk of influenza-related hospitalizations than those with the mean sun exposure time of ≤7 h/week (p < 0.05; OR, 0.667; 95% CI, 0.491-0.906).

CONCLUSIONS

Seasonal influenza vaccination effectively prevents influenza-related hospitalizations in children aged ≤5 years. Besides, >7 h of sun exposure/week may also be associated with lower risk of influenza-related hospitalizations in children.

The gut-brain relationship: Investigating the effect of multispecies probiotics on anxiety in a randomized placebo-controlled trial of healthy young adults

INTRO

There has been an increased interest in understanding the therapeutic effect of gut-microbiota on health, particularly in mental health. However, limited research into the connection between gut-microbiota and mental health makes this study an important endeavor in exploring the effect of gut-microbiota, through probiotics intervention, on mental health like anxiety and factors related to anxiety (e.g., anxiety control, affect, negative mood regulation, and worry).

METHOD

Healthy college students (N = 86; 75.6% female), average age of 20.59, participated in a double-blind, placebo-control, and randomization-control study. Eligible participants completed a baseline survey before being assigned to a condition, which consisted of four probiotics conditions and one placebo condition. After 28 days of daily intake, the participants returned to complete their exit survey.

RESULT

Probiotics were observed to improve panic anxiety, neurophysiological anxiety, negative affect, worry, and increase negative mood regulation. Furthermore, post hoc analyses revealed that the CFU (colony-forming unit) level was more effective than species counts in accounting for the number of significant improvements. A ceiling effect was detected in the study, participants with high distress reported higher number of improvements than those with normative distress.

CONCLUSION

Overall, this study is the first to examine the effect of CFU and species count on probiotics' efficacy. The study's finding suggested that probiotics may have the therapeutic potential to treat anxiety, however, further research is necessary to make that determination.

A paediatric influenza update 100 years after the Skyros island Spanish flu outbreak

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the 1918 Spanish flu outbreak on the Greek Aegean Sea island of Skyros, which devastated its population in less than 30 days. According to Constantinos Faltaits's annals published in 1919, the influenza attack on the island of Skyros commenced acutely ‘like a thunderbolt’ on the 27th of October, 1918 and was exceptionally severe and fatal. At that time, the viral cause of the influenza had not been detected, while the total number of victims of the Spanish flu outbreak has been estimated to have surpassed 50 million, worldwide. Almost one century after this Aegean Sea island's tragedy, the ‘4th Workshop on Paediatric Virology’, organised on the 22nd of September, 2018 in Athens, Greece, was dedicated to the 100 years of the ‘Spanish’ flu pandemic. This review article highlights the plenary and key lectures presented at the workshop on the recent advances on the epidemiology, clinical management and prevention of influenza in childhood.

Effects of Probiotic Supplement in Pregnant Women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

BACKGROUND

Previous studies showed that probiotics could improve glycemic control and attenuate some of the adverse effects of type 2 diabetes. However, whether the effects are generalizable to gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) remains uncertain.

OBJECTIVE

We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the effects of probiotic supplement in GDM.

METHOD

PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, and EBSCO were systematically searched for relevant literature published through January 2019. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the effects of probiotic supplement on one or more of the following in GDM were included: pregnancy outcome (the primary outcome), glycemic control, blood lipid profile, and inflammation and oxidative stress. Two reviewers independently extracted data and assessed the risk of bias in studies. Meta-analysis was conducted by using the fixed effects model unless substantial heterogeneity was found among studies.

RESULTS

Eleven randomized trials involving 719 participants were included for analysis. Eight of the trials were from Iran. Probiotics were given alone in eight trials and synbiotics in three trials. Though the components of probiotics varied, Lactobacillus was included in all trials and Bifidobacterium in all except one. The duration of intervention ranged from 4 to 8 weeks. Almost all trials (10/11) had a low risk of bias. Probiotic supplementation reduced the risk of a newborn's hyperbilirubinemia by 74% and improved four biomarkers for glycemic control (fasting blood glucose, fasting serum insulin, homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance, and quantitative insulin sensitivity check index), two biomarkers for lipid profile (triglycerides and HDL-cholesterol), and four biomarkers for inflammation and oxidative stress (total glutathione, malondialdehyde, nitric oxide, and total antioxidant capacity). But significant heterogeneity was observed in the meta-analyses on the four biomarkers related to glycemic control and on triglycerides, which could not be explained by prespecified subgroup analyses according to the mean age of participants and intervention type (i.e., probiotics or synbiotics). The effects on the risk of preterm delivery, macrosomia and a newborns' hypoglycemia, gestational age, total cholesterol, and LDL-cholesterol were not statistically significant.

CONCLUSION

Probiotic supplementation seemed to be able to reduce the risk of a newborn's hyperbilirubinemia and improve glycemic control, blood lipid profiles and inflammation and oxidative stress in pregnant women with GDM. However, due to the heterogeneity among existing studies, the surrogate nature of outcomes, and/or the fact that most studies were from Iran, the clinical significance and generalizability of the above findings remain uncertain. Further studies are warranted to address the limitations of existing evidence and better inform the management of GDM.

The therapeutic effect of probiotics on rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized control trials

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease in which probiotics appears to have an immune modulating action along with decreased inflammatory process. Therefore, we aim to investigate the efficacy of probiotics as an adjuvant therapy for rheumatoid arthritis. A comprehensive literature search was performed using nine databases including PubMed and Web of Science. Interesting data was extracted and meta-analyzed. We assessed the risk of bias using Cochrane Collaboration's tool. The protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD 42016036769). We found nine studies involving 361 patients who met our eligibility criteria. Our meta-analysis indicated that pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 was significantly lower in the probiotics compared with the placebo group (standardized mean difference = - 0.708; 95% confidence interval (CI) - 1.370 to 0.047, P = 0.036). However, there was no difference between probiotics and placebo in disease activity score (mean difference 0.023; 95% CI - 0.584 to 0.631, P = 0.940). Probiotics lowered pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 in RA; however, its clinical effect is still unclear. Hence, many high-quality randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are still needed to prove this effect.

Probiotics and Prebiotics for Prevention of Viral Respiratory Tract Infections

This chapter introduces the importance of viral upper respiratory tract infections and evidence that probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics may reduce not only their incidence, but also their duration and severity. It starts by explaining the importance of viral respiratory infections and the common cold including their prevalence, morbidity, mortality, and cost. The mechanisms of action are discussed next. Later, it represents the clinical trials using probiotics and prebiotics for the prevention of viral infection in different age groups. At the end of the chapter, a summary of latest evidences is presented.

Dietary lactosucrose suppresses influenza A (H1N1) virus infection in mice

This study examined the effects of lactosucrose (4^G-β-D-galactosylsucrose) on influenza A virus infections in mice. First, the effects of lactosucrose on fermentation in the cecum and on immune function were investigated. In female BALB/c mice, lactosucrose supplementation for 6 weeks promoted cecal fermentation and increased both secretory IgA (SIgA) levels in feces and total IgA and IgG2a concentrations in serum. Both the percentage of CD4⁺ T cells in Peyer’s patches and the cytotoxic activity of splenic natural killer (NK) cells increased significantly in response to lactosucrose. Next, we examined the effects of lactosucrose on low-dose influenza A virus infection in mice. After 2 weeks of dietary supplementation with lactosucrose, the mice were infected with low-dose influenza A virus. At 7 days post infection, a comparison with control mice showed that weight loss was suppressed, as were viral titers in the lungs. In the spleens of lactosucrose-fed mice, there was an increase in the percentage of NK cells. Lastly, mice fed lactosucrose were challenged with a lethal dose of influenza A virus. The survival rate of these mice was significantly higher than that of mice fed a control diet. These results suggested that lactosucrose supplementation suppresses influenza A virus infection by augmenting innate immune responses and enhancing cellular and mucosal immunity.

Effects of Lactobacillus casei supplementation on disease activity and inflammatory cytokines in rheumatoid arthritis patients: a randomized double-blind clinical trial

AIM

The present study aimed at investigating the effects of Lactobacillus casei 01 supplementation on symptoms and inflammatory biomarkers of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in women.

METHOD

In this randomized double-blind clinical trial, female patients with established RA for more than 1 year, 20-80 years of age and body mass index (BMI) lower than 40, who followed stable medication for 3 months prior to the supplementation, were randomly allocated to receive either one capsule containing 10(8) colony forming units (CFU) of L. casei 01, or a placebo for 8 weeks; allocation was stratified by BMI and menopausal status. Disease activity score-28 (DAS28) was calculated, European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) response was evaluated and the cytokines, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α were measured.

RESULTS

Thirty patients were recruited in each group; 22 and 24 patients were analyzed in the probiotic and placebo groups, respectively. L. casei 01 supplementation decreased serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels, tender and swollen joint counts, global health (GH) score and DAS28 (P < 0.05). More patients in the L. casei 01 group had moderate response to the treatment, based on the EULAR criteria, at the end of the study (P < 0.01). At the end of the study, a significant difference was observed between the two groups for IL-10, IL-12 and TNF-α changes through the study course (P < 0.05), in favor of the probiotic group. No adverse effects were reported for the intervention.

CONCLUSION

Probiotic supplementation may be an appropriate adjunct therapy for RA patients and help alleviate symptoms and improve inflammatory cytokines.

Dietary Enterococcus faecium NCIMB 10415 and zinc oxide stimulate immune reactions to trivalent influenza vaccination in pigs but do not affect virological response upon challenge infection

Swine influenza viruses (SIV) regularly cause significant disease in pigs worldwide. Since there is no causative treatment of SIV, we tested if probiotic Enterococcus (E.) faecium NCIMB 10415 or zinc (Zn) oxide as feed supplements provide beneficial effects upon SIV infection in piglets. Seventy-two weaned piglets were fed three different diets containing either E. faecium or different levels of Zn (2500 ppm, Zn^high; 50 ppm, Zn^low). Half of the piglets were vaccinated intramuscularly (VAC) twice with an inactivated trivalent SIV vaccine, while all piglets were then infected intranasally with H3N2 SIV. Significantly higher weekly weight gains were observed in the E. faecium group before virus infection, and piglets in Zn^high and E. faecium groups gained weight after infection while those in the control group (Zn^low) lost weight. Using ELISA, we found significantly higher H3N2-specific antibody levels in the E. faecium+VAC group 2 days before and at the day of challenge infection as well as at 4 and 6 days after challenge infection. Higher hemagglutination inhibition (HI) titers were also observed in the Zn^high+VAC and E. faecium+VAC groups at 0, 1 and 4 days after infection. However, there were no significant differences in virus shedding and lung lesions between the dietary groups. Using flow cytometry analysis significantly higher activated T helper cells and cytotoxic T lymphocyte percentages in the PBMCs were detected in the Zn^high and E. faecium groups at single time points after infection compared to the Zn^low control group, but no prolonged effect was found. In the BAL cells no influence of dietary supplementation on immune cell percentages could be detected. Our results suggest that feeding high doses of zinc oxide and particularly E. faecium could beneficially influence humoral immune responses after vaccination and recovery from SIV infection, but not affect virus shedding and lung pathology.

Probiotic supplementation improves inflammatory status in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

OBJECTIVES

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an inflammatory autoimmune disease in which the gut microbiota is altered. Probiotics are microorganisms that can normalize gut microbiota; thus, they may help to alleviate RA symptoms. The objective of the present clinical trial was to assess the effects of probiotic supplementation on disease activity and inflammatory cytokines in patients with RA.

METHODS

Forty-six patients with RA were assigned into two groups in this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. The patients in the probiotic group received a daily capsule that contained a minimum of 10(8) colony-forming units of Lactobacillus casei 01 for 8 wk. The placebo group took capsules filled with maltodextrin for the same time period. Questionnaires, anthropometric measurements, and fasting blood samples were collected, and the participants were assessed by a rheumatologist at baseline and at the end of the trial.

RESULTS

Disease activity score was significantly decreased by the intervention, and there was a significant difference between the two groups at the end of the study (P < 0.01). Three of the assessed serum proinflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6, and interleukin-12) significantly decreased in the probiotic group (P < 0.05); however, serum levels of interleukin-1 β were not significantly affected by the probiotic (P = 0.22). The serum level of regulatory cytokine (interleukin-10) was increased by the supplementation (P < 0.05). The proportion of interleukin-10 to interleukin-12 was significantly increased in the probiotic group as well.

CONCLUSIONS

L. casei 01 supplementation improved the disease activity and inflammatory status of patients with RA. Further studies are warranted to confirm these results, and such confirmation may lead to the introduction of probiotics as adjunctive therapy for this population.