CLINICAL ASPECTS AMT, vol. 21, no. 3, 2016, p. 26 NOVEL USES OF PROBIOTICS IN HUMAN HEALTH ANDREEA BARBU 1 , MIHAI BOGDAN NEAMȚU 2 , MARIUS ZĂHAN 3 , VIOARA MIREȘAN 4 1,3,4 University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine Cluj-Napoca, 1,2 Pediatric Clinic Hospital Sibiu, Research and Telemedicine Center in Neurological Diseases in Children - CEFORATEN Keywords: probiotic, uses, effects, human health Abstract: Probiotics are live organisms which, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit to the host. They are found in breast milk, dairy products, fermented vegetables, peas, etc. The obtained results of using probiotics to treat some disorders, especially of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, but of the skin or the liver as well, make Metchnikoff’s perspectives extend and the abundance of commercial probiotic found on the market is the proof that there are other, non- invasive, ways to treat diseases. The mechanism behind their effect is the following: by using probiotics, the number of selected bacteria will grow exponentially so the pathogens will not be able to colonize the GI tract, a process called “competitive exclusion”. The main effects of probiotic use were found in improving the patient’s gastrointestinal health, but also some promising results on anti-hypertensive activity; skin, oral and urogenital health; immune and liver function and cancer. 2 Corresponding author: Mihai Bogdan Neamțu, Str. Pompeliu Onofrei, Nr. 2-4, Sibiu, Romania, E-mail: bogdanneamtu76@gmail.com, Phone: +40773 994375 Article received on 08.08.2016 and accepted for publication on 12.09.2016 ACTA MEDICA TRANSILVANICA September 2016;21(3):26-30 Probiotics (lat. ”pro” – for, gr. ”biotic” – ”bios” – life) have been defined in 2001 by a Joint FAO/WHO group of experts as live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit to the host.(1) The introduction of the probiotic concept in 1907 by Nobel Prize winner Elie Metchnikoff, who suggested that “the dependence of the intestinal microbes on the food makes possible to adopt measures to modify the flora in our bodies and to replace the harmful microbes by useful microbes” (2), lead to various definitions of the term “probiotic”. This was firstly used in 1965 by Lily and Stillwell to describe “substances secreted by one organism which stimulate the growth of another” (2), followed by Parker, who in 1974 defined them as “organisms and substances which contribute to intestinal microbial balance”. In 1989, Fuller suggested that probiotics are “live microbial supplements which beneficially affect the host animal by improving its microbial balance” (3), followed by Salminen et al. who stated that probiotics are “foods containing live bacteria which are beneficial to health”.(2) The 2001 Guidelines for using probiotics conceived by FAO/WHO underlined that the benefits of one line or strain does not necessary apply to the other ones. Most probiotics are bacteria – both lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and non-lactic ones – but also yeasts.(4) The most commonly used probiotics are: Lactobacillus – found in kefir, yoghurt, and other fermented foods; Bifidobacterium – found in some dairy products; Saccharomyces boulardii – yeast probiotic; Streptococcus salivarius subsp. thermophilus – found in some dairy products, it generates large amounts of lactase; Enterococcus faecium – found in human and animal intestinal tract; Leuconostoc – LAB found in sauerkraut and other pickled vegetables.(4) The most used LAB are Lactobacillus acidophilus, L. bulgaricus, L. plantarum, L. casei, L. pentoaceticus, L brevis and L. thermophiles, as well as other Gram-positive bacteria introduced in food fermentation.(5) A new and unconventional probiotic source is green peas (Pisum sativum), due to the large amounts of Leuconostoc mesenteroides contained inside the beans.(6) One of the first reviews of the probiotic action of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) was written in 1999 by Naidu A.S. et al. (7) and it shows their ability to „prevent adherence, establishment and replication of several enteric mucosal pathogens, while releasing different enzymes into the intestinal lumen” and to manifest „synergistic effects on digestion and alleviate symptoms of intestinal malabsorption”. Consuming dairy products fermented with LAB can have potential antitumor effects, because it may inhibit “the mutagenic activity; decrease several enzymes implicated in the generation of carcinogens, mutagens, or tumor-promoting agents; suppression of tumors; and the epidemiology correlating dietary regimes and cancer”. The specific cellular components in LAB strains seem to induce strong helpful effects, including the „modulation of cell-mediated immune responses, activation of reticulo-endothelial system, augmentation of cytokine pathways and regulation of interleukins, and tumor necrosis factors”. Exploring prophylactic and therapeutic applications of probiotic LAB for reducing the addiction to synthetic antimicrobial substances and to control the continuously growing immune-compromised host population, resulted in a great success after 143 human clinical trials during 1961-1998, on a total of 7,526 subjects studied, where no one reported an adverse effect after oral intake of LAB; moreover LAB were well tolerated and proven to be safe for consumption. The research team stated that new functional probiotic foods will include baby formula, children food, fermented fruit juices, cereal and fermented soy bean products, but also disease specific clinical food containing viable LAB, prebiotic precursors and/or pro-bio-active cellular components.(7) Another important review regarding the importance and effects of probiotics or products containing probiotics has