The colonic mucus barrier is the first line of defence that the underlying mucosa has against the wide range of potentially damaging agents of microbial, endogenous, and dietary origin that occur within the colonic lumen. The functional component of mucus is the secreted, polymeric glycoprotein mucin. The mucus barrier can either act as an energy source or a support medium for growth to the int...

BACKGROUND The ionophoric coccidiostat salinomycin is widely used in chicken feed. In the near future the use of ionophore coccidiostats may be banned as has been the case for other antimicrobial growth promoters. This study was conducted to examine the effect of salinomycin on Campylobacter jejuni infection and on the composition of the caecal microflora in broiler chickens. METHODS An exper...

Collectively, mucositis refers to the damage caused to the mucous membranes of the body following cytotoxic cancer therapy. Diarrhea is one such manifestation of mucositis and is a common side effect of chemotherapy that remains poorly understood. It affects the entire gastrointestinal tract. The exact number of patients affected by diarrhea as a result of treatment is uncertain, although it is...

Commensal, intestinal E. coli microflora plays a role in maintenance of intestinal balance of the host, is responsible for defending against pathogenic E. coli. This study encompasses the analysis of BOX-PCR fingerprinting patterns, phylogenetic grouping and virulence genes prevalence among commensal E. coli isolates derived from healthy pigs. Altogether, 274 unique E. coli isolates were identi...

This study investigated the effects of dietary lactulose supplementation on broiler growth performance, intestinal histomorphology, cecal microflora, and cecal short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) concentrations. A total of 245 one-day-old male broiler chickens were randomly assigned to 5 different treatments, with 7 replicates including 7 birds each. The birds received the same basal diet based on co...

In this pilot-scale, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 30 patients with Helicobacter pylori infection were randomised into three groups prior to their 7 days eradication therapy, to study the effects of probiotic supplement comprising Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum on the intestinal microflora in response to antibiotic therapy. Group I received the placebo product f...

The indigenous microflora of the human large intestine is a complex ecosystem consisting of several hundred species of microorganisms [5]. The composition of the microflora is remarkably stable; the species coexist without one or a few becoming dominant [12]. One of its most important contributions to the host is its ability to impede the colonization of the intestinal tract by nonindigenous mi...

The pathogenic mechanisms responsible for inflammatory bowel disease, especially ulcerative colitis (UC), are poorly understood. As an animal model, the oral administration of dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) induces colitis, which exhibits several clinical and histological features similar to UC. However, the pathogenic factors responsible for DSS-induced colitis and above all, the intestinal micr...