Strategies for the Identification and Assessment of Bacterial Strains with Specific Probiotic Traits

Abstract

Early in the 1900s, it was proposed that health could be improved and senility delayed by manipulating gut microbiota with the host-friendly bacteria found in yogurt. Later, in 1990, the medical community reconsidered this idea and today probiotics represent a developed area of research with a billion-dollar global industry. As a result, in recent decades, increased attention has been paid to the isolation and characterization of novel probiotic bacteria from fermented foods and dairy products. Most of the identified probiotic strains belong to the lactic acid bacteria group and the genus Bifidobacterium. However, current molecular-based knowledge has allowed the identification and culture of obligatory anaerobic commensal bacteria from the human gut, such as Akkermansia spp. and Faecalibacterium spp., among other human symbionts. We are aware that the identification of new strains of these species does not guarantee their probiotic effects and that each effect must be proved through in vitro and in vivo preclinical studies before clinical trials (before even considering it as a probiotic strain). In most cases, the identification and characterization of new probiotic strain candidates may lack the appropriate set of in vitro experiments allowing the next assessment steps. Here, we address some innovative strategies reported in the literature as alternatives to classical characterization: (i) identification of alternatives using whole-metagenome shotgun sequencing, metabolomics, and multi-omics analysis; and (ii) probiotic characterization based on molecular effectors and/or traits to target specific diseases (i.e., inflammatory bowel diseases, colorectal cancer, allergies, among others).

Probiotic Potential and Safety Assessment of Type Strains of Weissella and Periweissella Species

“…The production of EPS facilitates gut colonization, thus representing a trait for probiotic bacterial evaluation ( 44 ). The EPS production influences the biochemical properties of the cell, including hydrophobicity and surface charge; EPS stabilizes microbial biofilm, enhancing bacterial adhesion and aggregation and increasing the tolerance to environmental stress ( 45 ).…”

The Effect of Lactobacillus acidophilus on Alleviating Stress Response and Production Impairment Induced by Escherichia coli Lipopolysaccharide in Laying Hens

“…It was found that GSH-px activity was dramatically decreased by oxidative factors in mice, yet both modest and high doses of lactobacillus reversed such effect (Chen et al, 2005;Wu et al, 2021). Moreover, it was manifested that bacilli endospores are lysed during their transit through the gastrointestinal tract and release their intracellular antioxidative constituents, which in turn absorbed from the small intestine and flow to the circulation to extend the potential antioxidant effects (Torres-Maravilla et al, 2022).…”

Genomic and Biochemical Characterization of Bifidobacterium pseudocatenulatum JCLA3 Isolated from Human Intestine

“…Another important biosynthetic capability in the genome was secondary bile acid biosynthesis by choloylglycine hydrolase (EC 3.5.1.24), an enzyme with possible appli-cations in hypercholesterolemia. Some probiotics show hypocholesterolemic effects in animal models due to reductions in lipid and cholesterol levels since BSH can deconjugate bile salts, inducing a de novo synthesis of conjugated salts at the expense of cholesterol, resulting in decreasing serum levels, alterations in energy, homeostasis and the excretion of larger amounts of free bile acids in feces, thus making BSH a clinically significant enzyme [40]. The BSH showed affinity to glycine and taurine secondary conjugates.…”