Probiotics in Pediatrics

The gut microbiota is critically important for development and maturation of the mucosal immune system right from birth till the whole life. The development of the immune system in neonates is especially important because it is not fully matured. However, its growth begins before birth. It depends on various factors like mode of delivery, mother’s microbiota, antibiotic consumption, mother’s milk, eating habits of infants and other environmental factors. Alterations in gut microbiota (dysbiosis) may disturb the gut homeostasis, and hamper the development of immune system. However, dysbiosis in infants may be averted by administration of probiotics. Mother’s milk contains various nutritive components along with some beneficial bacteria, probiotics (lactobacilli and bifidobacteria) which help in the development of gut microbiome of the infant. Probiotics, in particular, serve an important role in sustaining eubiosis in an infant's body. Any dysbiotic condition, particularly in infants, may be associated with a number of diseases/disorders like diarrhea, gastrointestinal problems, and allergic issues. Atopic dermatitis (AD) is one such common allergic problem prevalent in paediatrics. The probiotics serve as modulators of immune response and acts as immunobiotics. AD-related inflammation can be successfully managed by the intervention of probiotics. This review presents the potential of probiotics for proper development of infants’ immune system, and for prevention and treatment of various diseases, especially the ever-rising cases of AD

Probiotics in Pediatrics

653-661The gut microbiota is critically important for development and maturation of the mucosal immune system right from birth till the whole life. The development of the immune system in neonates is especially important because it is not fully matured. However, its growth begins before birth. It depends on various factors like mode of delivery, mother’s microbiota, antibiotic consumption, mother’s milk, eating habits of infants and other environmental factors. Alterations in gut microbiota (dysbiosis) may disturb the gut homeostasis, and hamper the development of immune system. However, dysbiosis in infants may be averted by administration of probiotics. Mother’s milk contains various nutritive components along with some beneficial bacteria, probiotics (lactobacilli and bifidobacteria) which help in the development of gut microbiome of the infant. Probiotics, in particular, serve an important role in sustaining eubiosis in an infant's body. Any dysbiotic condition, particularly in infants, may be associated with a number of diseases/disorders like diarrhea, gastrointestinal problems, and allergic issues. Atopic dermatitis (AD) is one such common allergic problem prevalent in paediatrics. The probiotics serve as modulators of immune response and acts as immunobiotics. AD-related inflammation can be successfully managed by the intervention of probiotics. This review presents the potential of probiotics for proper development of infants’ immune system, and for prevention and treatment of various diseases, especially the ever-rising cases of AD

Probiotic functional attributes of lactic acid bacteria from indigenously fermented milk product kalarei

546-557Immense variations among probiotics for health promoting effects have motivated the research impetus on bioprospecting of new/novel probiotic strains from exotic sources. In the current study, we isolated 20 lactic acid bacterial (LAB) strains from indigenous fermented milk food (kalarei) and evaluated their survival in simulated gastrointestinal juice (GIJ) and functional properties. Six LAB isolates showed high viability (94-99%; log cfu/mL 9.01-11.10). The phenol tolerance assay showed that isolates BK1 and BK2 had high viability of 91.15% and 90.32%, respectively. However, other isolates have shown moderate phenol tolerance (viability 53-82%). The selected LAB isolates were screened for probiotic functional attributes viz. hydrophobicity, autoaggregation and coaggregation. Results revealed that the selected LAB isolates had efficient adhesion ability, autoaggregation and coaggregation ability. Additionally, LAB isolates were investigated for antibiotic susceptibility and antioxidant potential. For ABTS radical scavenging assay, the highest antioxidant activity was shown by isolate BK2 (90.60%), while for DPPH radical scavenging assay, the highest antioxidant activity was shown by BK1 (89.32%). The isolates BK1 and BK2 which have shown promising probiotic functional attributes were identified based on 16S rDNA sequencing as the strains of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and designated as L. plantarum BK1 OQ927190 and L. plantarum BK2 OQ927187, respectively