What are Probitoics?
• The human microbiota, especially the gut microbiota, has even been considered to be an “essential organ” carrying approximately 150 times more genes than are found in the entire human genome. (8)
• The human digestive tract comprises a variety of ecological niches populated by several bacterial species that have established a symbiotic relationship with the host.
• Probiotics are defined as live microorganisms that when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host.
• This bacterial population, also called the intestinal microbiota, plays an important role in:
1. Development of the gut immune system
2. Digestion of food
3. Production of short-chain fatty acids and essential vitamins
4. Resistance to colonisation from pathogenic microorganisms
Benefits of probiotics have been seen in the treatment or prevention of:
• Diarrhoea
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome
• Ulcerative colitis
• Crohn’s disease
• H. pylori (the cause of gastric ulcers)
• Vaginal infections
• Urinary tract infections
• Recurrence of bladder cancer
• Infection of the digestive tract caused by Clostridium difficile
• Eczema in children
• Recently, probiotics have attracted lot of attention due to their various health benefits to humans [9, 10].
• There is significant progress on probiotics in the past decade for their diverse therapeutic efficacy.
Drawbacks of Probiotics
• Despite the commercial success of dairy probiotics, consumers have a genuine interest in non-dairy products due to lactose intolerance, cholesterol content and the trend towards vegetarianism.
• But, there are various hurdles in the way of making a commercial, non-dairy probiotic:
• Stability in the formulation
• Lack of a protective mechanism for the organism
• Lack of acid stability
• Premature activation of the probiotic by
• Heat
• Moisture
• Nutrition/Food
• Poor mucosal adhesion
• Sub-optimal division of CFUs
• Absence of immune-modulation abilities
What is the solution?
cap!
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