In this work we analyzed the immune activation properties of different Bifidobacterium strains in order to establish their ability as inductors of specific effector (Th) or regulatory (Treg) responses. First, we determined the cytokine pattern induced by 21 Bifidobacterium strains in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Results showed that four Bifidobacterium bifidum strains showed the ...

SLC26A3, or downregulated in adenoma (DRA), plays a major role in mediating Cl(-) absorption in the mammalian intestine. Disturbances in DRA function and expression have been implicated in intestinal disorders such as congenital Cl(-) diarrhea and gut inflammation. We previously showed that an increase in DRA function and expression by Lactobacillus acidophilus and its culture supernatant (CS) ...

Bifidobacteria are well known for their human health-promoting effects and are therefore widely applied in the food industry. Members of the Bifidobacterium genus were first identified from the human gastrointestinal tract and were then found to be widely distributed across various ecological niches. Although the genetic diversity of Bifidobacterium has been determined based on several marker g...

The taxonomic standing of Bifidobacterium lactis and Bifidobacterium animalis was investigated using a polyphasic approach. Sixteen representatives of both taxa were found to be phenotypically similar and shared more than 70% DNA-DNA relatedness (76-100%), which reinforces the conclusions of previous studies in which B. lactis and B. animalis were considered to be one single species. However, t...

OBJECTIVE The objective of this work was to study the lactobacilli and bifidobacteria population in human milk of healthy women, and to investigate the influence that several factors (including antibioteraphy during pregnancy and lactation, country and date of birth, delivery mode, or infant age) may exert on such population. METHODS A total of 160 women living in Germany or Austria provided ...

The objective of this research was to characterize the chemical properties of tomato juice fermented with bifidobacterial species. Tomato juice was prepared from fresh tomatoes and heated at 100 degrees C prior to fermentation. Bifidobacterium breve, Bifidobacterium longum, and Bifidobacterium infantis were inoculated in tomato juice and kept at 35 to 37 degrees C for up to 6 h. Fructooligosacc...

The Mongolian gerbil is being increasingly used as a laboratory animal and as a pet. Both chinchillas and gerbils are used as animal models for otitis media and other otic research. Previously, only incomplete information was available regarding the indigenous bacterial flora of the lower intestinal tracts of these coprophagic animals. Using the strict anaerobic methodology of the Virginia Poly...

The present study combines the theory and the experimental data to predict the changes on intestinal bacterial populations during ingestion of beneficial probiotic bacteria. Our proposed model is a modified version of the LotkaVolterra model, which takes the probiotic administration into account. Using the linear stability analysis of the model, the conditions for coexistence of the probiotics ...

We investigated the effects of O2 on Bifidobacterium species using liquid shaking cultures under various O2 concentrations. Although most of the Bifidobacterium species we selected showed O2 sensitivity, two species, B. boum and B. thermophilum, demonstrated microaerophilic profiles. The growth of B. bifidum and B. longum was inhibited under high-O2 conditions accompanied by the accumulation of...