Potential mechanisms of enteric cytoprotection by probiotics: Lessons from cultured human intestinal cells

Abstract

Probiotic lactic acid strains are defined as live microorganisms which, when consumed in appropriate amounts in food, confer a health benefit on the host (FAO/WHO 2001, 2002). These strains include lactobacilli and bifidobacteria, which are commercialized as food or dietary supplements of living bacteria, and have attracted the interest of scientists as well as consumers (Gorbach 2000; Mercenier et al. 2003; Picard et al. 2005; Saxelin et al. 2005; Reid and Bruce 2006; Blandino et al. 2008; Koninkx and Malago 2008; Preidis and Versalovic 2009). One of the advantages of repeatedly consuming probiotic lactic acid bacteria in appropriate amounts could be that they maintain a higher, albeit generally transient, bacterial density in the upper part of the intestinal tract, a location that normally hosts very few resident microbiota bacteria, and in which enteric Gram-negative pathogens produce their harmful effects. The number and activity of live bacteria present in probiotic preparations sometimes declines if they are stored for inappropriate times and/or at inappropriate temperatures. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.