Effects of Probiotic Intake on Intestinal Bifidobacteria of Celiac Patients

Abstract

-Background -Healthy individuals exhibit a significantly higher concentration of faecal bifidobacteria in comparison to celiac patients.Even though there are potential benefits in probiotic usage, they have been little explored as an adjunctive therapy in celiac disease. Objective -This study aimed at the comparison of faecal bifidobacteria concentration and pH among celiac patients and healthy subjects before and after the daily intake of 100 g of yogurt containing probiotic for a thirty-day period. Methods -Feces from 17 healthy subjects and 14 celiac patients were analyzed, in which stool culture was performed for the isolation and quantification of faecal bifidobacteria. Furthermore, Gram's method was employed for the microscopic analysis of the colonies, while the identification of the Bifidobacterium genus was made through determination of the fructose-6-phosphate phosphoketolase enzyme. Faecal pH was measured using a calibrated pHmeter. Results -Faecal bifidobacteria concentration before probiotic consumption was significantly higher in healthy individuals (2.3x10 8 ±6.3x10 7 CFU/g) when compared to celiac patients (1.0x10 7 ±1.7x10 7 CFU/g). Faecal pH values did not show a significant difference. After the daily consumption of probiotic-containing yogurt both groups showed a significant increase in the concentration of faecal bifidobacteria, but healthy subjects presented significantly higher bifidobacteria concentrations (14.7x10 8 ±0.2x10 8 CFU/g) than the celiac group (0.76x10 8 ±0.1x10 8 CFU/g). The obtained pH values from both groups were not significantly different, being 7.28±0.518 for the celiac patients and 7.07±0.570 for healthy individuals after the probiotic intake. Conclusion -The probiotic supplementation significantly increased the number of bifidobacteria in the feces of celiac patients, although it was not sufficient to reach the concentration found in healthy individuals prior to its consumption.

Probiotics, Prebiotics and Other Dietary Supplements for Gut Microbiota Modulation in Celiac Disease Patients

“…Probiotics are also able to regulate the immune response, the degradation of toxin receptors, the competition for nutrients, the blockage of adhesion sites, and the production of inhibitory substances against pathogens [ 49 ]. Studies evaluating the effect of probiotics in CD patients are summarized in Table 1 and Table 2 [ 8 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 ]. In particular, a study by Lindfors et al [ 50 ] highlighted that specific probiotics, such as Lactobacillus fermentum or Bifidobacterium lactis , have a protective role against the toxic effects of gliadin in intestinal cell cultures (human colon Caco-2 cells), with the result of dose-dependent inhibition of increased epithelial gliadin-induced permeability and stimulation of IL-10 production by regulatory T-cells [ 55 , 67 ].…”

The Effect of Gluten-Free Diet on Health and the Gut Microbiota Cannot Be Extrapolated from One Population to Others

“…to treat GRD, particularly CD, with promising results (e.g., suppression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, reduction of mucosal damage, and enhanced production of SCFAs [ 31 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 ]). Other studies have shown a potential of probiotics to modulate the indigenous gut microbiota in patients with CD with inconsistent results [ 46 , 47 ].…”

An open-label, randomized, placebo-controlled study on the effectiveness of a novel probiotics administration protocol (ProbiotiCKD) in patients with mild renal insufficiency (stage 3a of CKD)

“…In addition, a cultural quantitative analysis of two different fecal bacteria clusters ( Lactobacillales and Bifidobacteria ) were rapidly analyzed by anaerobic technique at the Microbiology Unit of University Hospital of Catanzaro. According to previous studies, any stool sample in which Lactobacillales and Bifidobacteria concentrations were found < 1 × 10 7 CFU/g and < 1 × 10 8 CFU/g respectively, was considered associated to an altered gut microbiota [4, 5, 22]. All patients had to collect a morning spot urine sample for 3-MI and indican assessment by high-performance liquid chromatography and colorimetric technique, respectively.…”

“…Bacteria concentrations vary along the gut with an exponential increase in the fecal direction [3]. As for recent reports, fecal concentrations of Lactobacillales and Bifidobacteria range 1 × 10 7 to 1 × 10 10 CFU/g [4] and 1 × 10 8 to 1 × 10 10 CFU/g [5], respectively.…”