Preserving viability of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG in vitro and in vivo by a new encapsulation system

Abstract

Probiotics have shown beneficial effects on health and prevention of diseases in humans. However, a concern for application of probiotics is the loss of viability during storage and gastrointestinal transit. The aim of this study was to develop an encapsulation system to preserve viability of probiotics when they are administrated orally and apply Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) as a probiotic model to evaluate the effectiveness of this approach using in vitro and in vivo experiments. LGG was encapsulated in hydrogel beads prepared using pectin, a food grade polysaccharide, glucose, and calcium chloride, and lyophilized by freeze-drying. Encapsulated LGG was cultured in vitro under the condition that mimicked the physiological environment of the human gastrointestinal tract. Compared to non-encapsulated LGG, encapsulation increased tolerance of LGG in the acid condition, protected LGG from protease digestion, and improved shelf time when stored at the ambient condition, in regard of survivability and production of p40, a known LGG-derived protein involved in LGG’s beneficial effects on intestinal homeostasis. To evaluate the effects of encapsulation on p40 production in vivo and prevention of intestinal inflammation by LGG, mice were gavaged with LGG containing beads and treated with dextran sulphate sodium (DSS) to induce intestinal injury and colitis. Compared to non-encapsulated LGG, encapsulated LGG enhanced more p40 production in mice, and exerted higher levels of effects on prevention of DSS-induced colonic injury and colitis and suppression of pro-inflammatory cytokine production. These data indicated that the encapsulation system developed in this study preserves viability of LGG in vitro and in vivo, leading to longer shelf time and enhancing the functions of LGG in the gastrointestinal tract. Thus, this encapsulation approach may have the potential application for improving efficacy of probiotics.

Production of a Functional Factor, p40, by Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG Is Promoted by Intestinal Epithelial Cell-Secreted Extracellular Vesicles

“…Encapsulation is a technology for preserving probiotic viability and improving mucoadhesion of probiotics to the intestinal tract under adverse environmental conditions (51). Our future work will utilize citrus pectin LC950 with an esterification system developed by our group (52) and galacturonic acid by another group (53) to encapsulate LGG with EVs to improve the efficacy of LGG treatment by EVs for the prevention and treatment of intestinal inflammation.…”

Progress in microencapsulation of probiotics: A review

“…First, they may be designed to form a physical barrier that protects the probiotics from any problematic components in the surrounding environment such as gastric acids, bile salts, or digestive enzymes. Second, they may be designed to coencapsulate the probiotics with specific nutrients that help the probiotics to survive such as digestible carbohydrates, dietary fibers, proteins, lipids, or minerals (Cotter & Hill, ; Gonzalez‐Ferrero et al., ; Haghshenas et al., ; Huq et al., ; Li et al., ; Pankasemsuk, Apichartsrangkoon, Worametrachanon, & Techarang, ). Third, they may be designed to contain additives that provide a favorable local climate for the probiotics such as antacids to control the local pH (Li et al., ; Yao et al., ).…”

“…Although alginate is probably the most widely used biopolymer to fabricate microgels, other biopolymers can also be used. For instance, encapsulation of probiotics ( L. rhamnosus GG ) in microgels assembled from pectin has also been shown to improve their viability within simulated GIT conditions (Li et al., ). Moreover, the thermal and GIT stability of probiotics has also been improved by encapsulating them within microgels formed from high‐amylose starch (Khosravi Zanjani, Ehsani, Ghiassi Tarzi, & Sharifan, ).…”

“…If the microgels are too large, then they may have adverse effects on the mouthfeel of commercial products and may remain trapped within the stomach. Conversely, if they are too small, then the probiotics cannot be encapsulated or they are degraded too quickly because of the large exposed surface area (Li et al., ). One study reported that microgels should have diameters less than about 200 μm to ensure good passage through the GIT (Cook et al., ).…”

Bakteri̇yofaj Enkapsülasyonu Ve Potansi̇yel Uygulamalari

“…Yap›lan araflt›rmalarda uygulanan mikroenkapsülasyon ifllemi sonucunda probiyotiklerin daha uzun süre canl›l›¤›n› korudu¤u ve biyoyararl›l›¤›n›n artt›r›ld›¤› ifade edilmifltir (23)(24)(25)(26).…”