Live probiotic Bifidobacterium lactis bacteria inhibit the toxic effects induced by wheat gliadin in epithelial cell culture

• Published in: Clinical and experimental immunology Vol. 152; no. 3; pp. 552 - 558
• Main Authors: Lindfors, K, Blomqvist, T, Juuti-Uusitalo, K, Stenman, S, Venäläinen, J, Mäki, M, Kaukinen, K
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Oxford, UK : Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-06-2008; Blackwell Publishing Ltd; Blackwell; Blackwell Science Inc
• Subjects: Analytical, structural and metabolic biochemistry; Basic Immunology; Bifidibacterium lactis; Bifidobacterium; Bifidobacterium lactis; Biological and medical sciences; Caco-2 Cells; celiac disease; Cell Membrane - drug effects; Cell Membrane - metabolism; Cell Membrane Permeability - drug effects; coeliac disease; Electric Impedance; Epithelial Cells - drug effects; Epithelial Cells - metabolism; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gastroenterology. Liver. Pancreas. Abdomen; gliadin; Gliadin - antagonists & inhibitors; Gliadin - toxicity; Humans; Intestinal Mucosa - drug effects; Intestinal Mucosa - metabolism; Lactobacillus fermentum; Medical sciences; Membrane Proteins - metabolism; Molecular biophysics; Other diseases. Semiology; Phosphoproteins - metabolism; Probiotics - pharmacology; Stomach. Duodenum. Small intestine. Colon. Rectum. Anus; Tight Junctions - drug effects; Triticum - chemistry; Triticum aestivum; Zonula Occludens-1 Protein; Probiotic; Immunopathology; Cell culture; Lactobacillus fermentum; Eubacteria; Bifidobacteriaceae; Biochemistry; Coeliac disease; Intestinal malabsorption; Actinobacteridae; Gliadin; Bifidobacterium animalis; Actinobacteria; Bacteria; Lactobacillaceae; Digestive diseases; Intestinal disease; Epithelial cell; Bifidobacteriales; Molecular biology; Bifidibacterium lactis
• ISSN: 0009-9104; 1365-2249
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2249.2008.03635.x

Wheat gliadin induces severe intestinal symptoms and small-bowel mucosal damage in coeliac disease patients. At present, the only effective treatment for the disease is a strict life-long gluten-free diet. In this study we investigated whether probiotics Lactobacillus fermentum or Bifidobacterium lactis can inhibit the toxic effects of gliadin in intestinal cell culture conditions. The ability of live probiotics to inhibit peptic-tryptic digested gliadin-induced damage to human colon cells Caco-2 was evaluated by measuring epithelial permeability by transepithelial resistance, actin cytoskeleton arrangements by the extent of membrane ruffling and expression of tight junctional protein ZO-1. B. lactis inhibited the gliadin-induced increase dose-dependently in epithelial permeability, higher concentrations completely abolishing the gliadin-induced decrease in transepithelial resistance. The same bacterial strain also inhibited the formation of membrane ruffles in Caco-2 cells induced by gliadin administration. Furthermore, it also protected the tight junctions of Caco-2 cells against the effects of gliadin, as evinced by the pattern of ZO-1 expression. We conclude thus that live B. lactis bacteria can counteract directly the harmful effects exerted by coeliac-toxic gliadin and would clearly warrant further studies of its potential as a novel dietary supplement in the treatment of coeliac disease.