Probiotics are microorganisms that confer health benefits to host. Well-known examples include Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus species. In recent years, interest in promoting our health with ...probiotics has grown as life expectancy and health awareness has increased. However, some concerns for safety and stability exist for these live organisms. Thus, “postbiotics” and “paraprobiotics,” non-viable heat-killed microbial cells or cell fractions that retain health benefits, are increasingly favored. Unfortunately, little information on clinical efficacy and mechanisms of action is available compared with many available probiotics. Lacticaseibacillus (previous name Lactobacillus) paracasei MCC1849 is a commonly used lactic acid bacterial strain in Japan that displays immuno-modulatory effects in humans in non-viable heat-killed form. This review discusses health benefits of heat-killed L. paracasei MCC1849 immune modulation and offers a theoretical basis for its mechanisms of action. We also discuss the feasibility of using heat-killed probiotics for application in food products.
Accumulating evidence suggests a relationship between the gut microbiota and the development of obesity, indicating the potential of probiotics as a therapeutic approach. Bifidobacterium breve B-3 ...has been shown to exert anti-obesity effects in high-fat diet-induced obese mice. In the present study, the anti-obesity effects of the consumption of B. breve B-3 by healthy pre-obese (25 ≤ BMI < 30) adults were investigated in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial (trial registration: UMIN-CTR No. 000023919; preregistered on September 2, 2016). Eighty participants were randomized to receive placebo or B. breve B-3 capsules (2 × 1010 CFU/day) daily for 12 weeks. The visceral fat area significantly increased at weeks 4 and 8 in the placebo group only; no significant change was observed in the B-3 group. Body fat mass and percent body fat were significantly lower in the B-3 group than in the placebo group at weeks 8 and 12 (p<0.05, ANCOVA adjusted with baseline values). Although no significant differences were observed in blood parameters between the groups, the intake of B. breve B-3 slightly decreased triglyceride levels and improved HDL cholesterol from the baseline. No serious adverse effects were noted in either group. These results suggest that the probiotic strain B. breve B-3 has potential as a functional food ingredient to reduce body fat in healthy pre-obese individuals.
Probiotic administration may be a useful method for preventing allergies in infants; however, there have been controversial results about the efficacy. We investigated the effects of bifidobacterial ...supplementation on the risk of developing allergic diseases in the Japanese population.
In an open trial, we gave Bifidobacterium breve M-16V and Bifidobacterium longum BB536 prenatally to 130 mothers beginning 1 month prior to delivery and postnatally to their infants for 6 months. Another 36 mother-infant pairs served as controls and did not receive the bifidobacterial supplementation. Development of allergic symptoms in the infants was assessed at 4, 10 and 18 months of age. Fecal samples were collected from the mothers and infants.
The risk of developing eczema_atopic dermatitis (AD) during the first 18 months of life was significantly reduced in infants in the probiotic group (OR: 0.231 95% CI: 0.084-0.628 and 0.304 0.105-0.892 at 10 and 18 months of age, respectively). Pyrosequencing analyses indicated an altered composition of the fecal microbiota at 4 months for infants who developed eczema_AD at 4 and 10 months of age. The proportion of Proteobacteria was significantly lower (P = 0.007) in mothers at the time of delivery who received the supplementation when compared with the control group and was positively correlated (r = 0.283, P = 0.024) with that of infants at 4 months of age. No adverse effects were related to the use of probiotics.
These data suggest that the prenatal and postnatal supplementation of bifidobacteria is effective in primary preventing allergic diseases. Some limited changes in the composition of fecal microbiota by the bifidobacterial supplementation were observed.
Antigen-specific immunoglobulin (Ig) A plays a major role in host defense against infections in gut mucosal tissue. Follicular helper T (Tfh) cells are located in germinal centers and promote IgA ...production via interactions with germinal center B cells. Several studies have demonstrated that some lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains activate the host's acquired immune system, inducing IgA secretion in the intestine. However, the precise molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of LAB on IgA production and Tfh cells are not fully resolved. Lactobacillus paracasei MCC1849 is a probiotic strain isolated from the intestine of a healthy adult. In this study, we investigated the effects of orally administered heat-killed MCC1849 on IgA production in the intestine and on Tfh cell induction in vivo. We found that orally administered MCC1849 induced antigen-specific IgA production in the small intestine, serum and lungs. We also observed that MCC1849 increased the proportion of IgA+ B cells and Tfh cells in Peyer's patches (PPs). In addition, MCC1849 increased the gene expression of IL-12p40, IL-10, IL-21, STAT4 and Bcl-6 associated with Tfh cell differentiation. These results suggest that orally administered MCC1849 enhances antigen-specific IgA production and likely affects Tfh cell differentiation in PPs.
Probiotics intervention has been proposed as a feasible preventative approach against adverse health-related complications in infants. Nevertheless, the umbrella concept of probiotics has led to a ...massive application of probiotics in a range of products for promoting infant health, for which the strain-specificity, safety and efficacy findings associated with a specific probiotics strain are not clearly defined.
M-16V is a commonly used probiotic strain in infants. M-16V has been demonstrated to offer potential in protecting infants from developing the devastating necrotising enterocolitis (NEC) and allergic diseases. This review comprehends the potential beneficial effects of M-16V on infant health particularly in the prevention and treatment of premature birth complications and immune-mediated disorders in infants. Mechanistic studies supporting the use of M-16V implicated that M-16V is capable of promoting early gut microbial colonisation and may be involved in the regulation of immune balance and inflammatory response to protect high-risk infants from NEC and allergies. Summarised information on M-16V has provided conceptual proof of the use of M-16V as a potential probiotics candidate aimed at promoting infant health, particularly in the vulnerable preterm population.
We investigated whether the oral administration of Bifidobacterium longum BB536 could ameliorate influenza virus (IFV) infection in a mice model. Mice were orally administrated BB536 or saline for 2 ...weeks and then infected with IFV. Orally administered BB536 significantly alleviated symptoms, reduced the loss of body weight, and inhibited viral proliferation in the lungs relative to the control group findings. Histopathological findings in the lungs were improved in the BB536 group compared to control group findings. There was no significant difference in the levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), IL-10 and IL-12p40 in the lungs between the groups, but the levels of IL-6 and IFN-γ were lower (p=0.076, 0.103, respectively) in the BB536 group compared with those of control group. The levels of IL-6 and IL-10 correlated significantly with the values of weight loss, and the levels of IFN-γ correlated with the virus titers in the lungs. These results suggested the potential of the oral administration of BB536 in ameliorating IFV infection and the possible involvement of anti-inflammatory effects of BB536 in the anti-infection effects against IFV.
Previous clinical studies have shown that heat-killed
MCC1849 suppresses subjective symptoms among healthy adults. However, the mechanism underlying this beneficial effect remains unclear. This ...clinical study aimed to investigate the effects of MCC1849 on immune functions in humans. In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study, 100 healthy adults were randomly divided into MCC1849 or placebo groups. Participants ingested test powder with 5 × 10
MCC1849 cells or placebo powder for 4 weeks. Immune functions were evaluated using expression levels of CD86 and HLA-DR on dendritic cells (DCs), neutrophils, and natural killer cells. The expression levels of interferon (IFN)-α, -β, and -γ in peripheral blood mononuclear cells incubated with Cpg2216 in vitro were quantified. Efficacy analysis was performed on participants in the per-protocol set (placebo group; n = 47, MCC1849 group; n = 49). The expression level of CD86 on pDCs and the gene expression levels of IFN-α, -β, and -γ upon TLR9 agonist stimulation were significantly higher in the MCC1849 group at 4 weeks. No side effects were observed. This is the first report to show the positive effects of MCC1849 on human immune cells. These findings reveal one possible mechanism of how MCC1849 suppresses subjective symptoms.
Visceral fat accumulation is considered to be associated with a higher risk of chronic diseases. We investigated the effects of
subsp.
(
) BB536 and
(
) MCC1274 on body composition, including ...visceral fat, in a randomized, parallel-group, placebo-controlled study. Participants were between 29 and 64 years of age and had a body mass index (BMI) of greater than 23 and less than 30. One hundred participants were randomly assigned to the probiotics group or placebo group. Participants were administered probiotic capsules containing 1 × 10
colony-forming units (CFUs) of
BB536 and 5 × 10
CFU of
MCC1274 or placebo capsules without bifidobacteria for 16 weeks. In the probiotics group, abdominal visceral fat area, total abdominal fat area, and serum triglyceride levels were significantly decreased compared to those in the placebo group. Additionally, the increase in BMI observed in the placebo group was significantly suppressed in the probiotics group. This study showed that
BB536 and
MCC1274 reduced abdominal visceral fat and total fat levels in healthy normal and overweight adults, suggesting their beneficial effects on body composition.
The interaction between the gut microbiota and the host can influence the host's immune system.
, a commensal genus of gut bacteria, seems to have positive effects on host health. Our previous ...clinical research showed that
subsp.
BB536 enhanced innate and adaptive immune responses in elderly individuals with a lower grade of immunity, but the immunomodulatory mechanism is still unclear. In this study, dendritic cell (DC) surface markers in peripheral blood mononuclear cells isolated from healthy individuals were evaluated through coculture with heat-killed BB536. DC markers, innate immune activity and cytokine levels in plasma were also evaluated by a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study (UMIN000045564) with 4 weeks of continuous live BB536 intake. BB536 significantly increased the expression of CD86 and HLA-DR on plasmacytoid DCs (pDCs) in vitro. Compared to placebo (
= 48), a significant increase in the expression of CD86 on peripheral pDCs was detected at week 4 of live BB536 intake (
= 49; 1 × 10
CFU/day). Furthermore, coculture with hk-BB536 significantly increased the
expression level and demonstrated trends of increased
and
expression. These findings suggest that consumption of BB536 has potential immunomodulatory effects on healthy individuals through the activation of peripheral pDCs.
We previously reported that the intake of heat-killed
MCC1849 suppressed the onset of cold-like symptoms in healthy young women who were susceptible to colds. This study aimed to investigate the ...effects of MCC1849 on subjective symptoms of physical condition in healthy adults of a wide age range. In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study, 200 healthy adults were randomly divided into the MCC1849 group or placebo group. The participants received test powder with 50 billion MCC1849 cells or placebo powder without MCC1849 for 24 weeks. Subjective symptoms were assessed by diary scores. Analysis was performed on 183 participants (MCC1849 group;
= 91, placebo group;
= 92) in the per-protocol set. The number of days of stuffy nose and cold-like symptoms was significantly reduced in the MCC1849 group compared with the placebo group. In addition, the duration of stuffy nose, sore throat and cold-like symptoms was significantly lower in the MCC1849 group. No side effects were observed. Therefore, oral intake of MCC1849 suppressed subjective symptoms in healthy adults of a wide age range. These data suggest that MCC1849 may help maintain physical condition.
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