Effect of probiotic supplementation on total lactobacilli, bifidobacteria and short chain fatty acids in 2–5-year-old children

Abstract

ABSTRACT​Background: Consumption of Lactobacillus paracasei Lpc-37 or Bifidobacterium lactis HN019 by 2–5-year-old children was found to reduce risk for diarrhoea and fever during the rainy season. Objective: Can changes in faecal short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) or branched chain fatty acids (BCFAs) explain the observed positive influence of probiotics and their role on nutritional status and diarrhoea risk? Design: Faecal samples were analysed for SCFAs and BCFAs and correlated to Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus levels; both at the start and after nine months’ consumption of either of the two probiotic strains, or placebo. Results: No differences in SCFAs, BCFAs, Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium levels were found between boys and girls. Severely underweight children were observed to have the highest Lactobacillus levels. Probiotic intervention was found to be associated with higher levels of selected SCFAs and BCFAs in subjects who had experienced diarrhoea. Treatment with either of the probiotics led to changes in SCFAs and BCFAs. SCFAs, acetate, propionate and butyrate, were found to correlate with each other. Likewise, BCFAs isobutyrate, 2-methylbutyrate and isovalerate correlated with each other. After the intervention, L. paracasei Lpc-37 correlated positively with total Bifidobacterium counts and isovalerate levels. B. lactis HN019 counts were found to correlate positively with total bacterial counts and negatively with propionate levels. Conclusions: ​Nutritional status was associated with higher levels of faecal lactobacilli; the meaning of this requires further investigation. The intervention with the two probiotics was observed to influence the levels of faecal SCFAs and BCFAs and there is a differential response in those who developed diarrhoea and those who did not. It is, however, not clear to what extent this is a mechanism that explains the earlier observed effect the strains had on diarrhoea risk.

The Cheese Matrix Modulates the Immunomodulatory Properties of Propionibacterium freudenreichii CIRM-BIA 129 in Healthy Piglets

“…These results are consistent with a previous transcriptomic study demonstrating that P. freudenreichii , within the colon, represses the wood-werkman cycle pathway (suggesting decreased propionic and acetic acid production), while inducing branched-chain amino acid degradation (suggesting an increase of BCFA production) ( Saraoui et al, 2013 ). The modulation of SCFA content could also result indirectly from the increase of bifidobacteria population ( Ríos-Covián et al, 2016 ; Hemalatha et al, 2017 ; LeBlanc et al, 2017 ). In a previous study, P. freudenreichii CIRM-BIA 129, with a dose of 1.10 10 CFU/day, did not change colonic SCFA concentration in healthy piglets ( Cousin et al, 2012a ).…”

Immunological Tolerance and Function: Associations Between Intestinal Bacteria, Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Phages

“…Among all the microbial metabolites expressed in the intestinal lumen the most abundant in the colon are SCFAs ( 73 ). Recently, probiotic species from the Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria genera were demonstrated to increase the levels of fecal SCFAs ( 74 ). These chemical species exhibit multi-faceted regulatory roles in the local mucosal immune system in the gut.…”

Clinical Efficacy Comparison Of Saccharomyces Boulardii And Lactic Acid As Probiotics In Acute Pediatric Diarrhea

“…12 Sahar Feizizadeh and others have systematically reviewed the effect of S. boulardii on acute childhood diarrhea. [13][14][15] Pooling data from trials showed that S. boulardii significantly reduced the duration of diarrhea, stool frequency on day two after intervention compared with control. 16 S. boulardii is safe and has clear beneficial effects in children who have acute diarrhea, [17][18][19][20] and the present results are in agreement with this study.…”