Geun Eog Ji

Effect of probiotic mix (Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium lactis, Lactobacillus acidophilus) in the primary prevention of eczema: a double‐blind, randomized, placebo‐controlled trial

Kim JY, Kwon JH, Ahn SH, Lee SI, Han YS, Choi YO, Lee SY, Ahn KM, Ji GE. Effect of probiotic mix (Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium lactis, Lactobacillus acidophilus) in the primary prevention of eczema: a double‐blind, randomized, placebo‐controlled trial.
Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2010: 21: e386–e393.
© 2009 John Wiley & Sons A/S

Production of γ-aminobutyric acid in black raspberry juice during fermentation by Lactobacillus brevis GABA100

Black raspberry juice was fermented to produce gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) using lactic acid bacteria (Lactobacillus brevis GABA 100) at different temperatures (25, 30, or 37 degrees C) and pHs (3.5, 4, 4.5, 5, 5.5, or 6) for 15 days. Concentrations of GABA in the juices were determined during fermentation using HPLC. GABA was produced continuously even if the viable bacterial counts markedly decreased. The fermentation at 30 degrees C generally showed higher production of GABA in the juices than those at 25 and 37 degrees C. The GABA in the juices fermented at 30 degrees C reached the maximum levels on the 12th day. The juices fermented at lower pH and lower temperature showed a lower degradation of monomeric anthocyanins. The results suggest that black raspberry juice can be GABA enriched using lactic acid bacteria.

Binding of aflatoxin B1 to bifidobacteria in vitro.

Aflatoxins are mycotoxins that cause health and economic problems when they contaminate food and feed. One potential method for reducing human health effects due to aflatoxin ingestion is to block uptake via binding by bacteria that either make up the normal gut flora or are present in fermented foods in our diet. These bacteria would bind aflatoxin and make it unavailable for absorption in the intestinal tract. Bifidobacteria comprise a large fraction of the normal gut flora, are thought to provide many probiotic effects and are increasingly used in fermented dairy products. These qualities targeted bifidobacteria for studies to determine if various strains of heat-killed bifidobacteria can bind aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) in vitro. The AFB1 binding affinities of various strains of bifidobacteria, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli were quantitated utilizing enzyme-linked immunosorbent and [3H]AFB1 binding assays. The bacteria analyzed were found to bind significant quantities of AFB1 ranging from 25% to nearly 60% of the added toxin. The data also suggest that there are reproducible strain differences in AFB1 binding capacity.

Genome Sequence of the Probiotic Bacterium Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis AD011

Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis is a probiotic bacterium that naturally inhabits the guts of most mammals, including humans. Here we report the complete genome sequence of B. animalis subsp. lactis AD011 that was isolated from an infant fecal sample. Biological functions encoded in a single circular chromosome of 1,933,695 bp, smallest among the completely sequenced bifidobacterial genomes, are suggestive of their probiotic functions, such as utilization of bifidogenic factors and a variety of glycosidic enzymes and biosynthesis of polysaccharides.

Transformation of Rutin to Antiproliferative Quercetin-3-glucoside by Aspergillus niger

The flavonol quercetin in plants and foods occurs predominantly in the form of glycoside whose sugar moiety affects the bioavailability and the mechanism of its biological activities. The antiproliferative activities of quercetin derivatives such as quercetin aglycone, quercetin-3-β-D-glucoside (Q3G), and rutin were compared using six different cancer cell lines including colon, breast, hepatocellular, and lung cancer. The IC50 value of Q3G ranged between 15 and 25 μM in HT-29, HCT 116, MCF-7, HepG2, and A549 cells. In these five cell lines, Q3G showed the most potent growth inhibition, whereas rutin showed the least potency. Transformation of rutin to Q3G was conducted by controlling α-L-rhamnosidase and β-D-glucosidase activities from crude enzyme extract of Aspergillus niger. Carbon sources during culture and transformation conditions such as pH, temperature, and heat-stability were optimized. After 4 h biotransformation, 99% of rutin was transformed to Q3G and no quercetin was detected. This study presented an efficient biotransformation for the conversion of rutin to Q3G which was newly shown to have more potent antiproliferative effect than quercetin and rutin.

Sequence analysis of plasmid pKJ50 from Bifidobacterium longum

The complete nucleotide sequence of a plasmid, pKJ50, isolated from an intestinal bacterium, Bifidobacterium longum KJ, has been determined. The plasmid was analysed and found to be 4960 bp in size with a G+C content of 61.7 mol%. Computer analysis of sequence data revealed three major ORFs encoding putative proteins of 31.5 (ORFI), 24.5 (ORFII) and 38.6 kDa (ORFIII). ORFI encodes a protein with a pI of 10.18 and shows relatively high amino acid sequence similarity (more than 60%) with several plasmid replication proteins from Gram-positive and -negative bacteria. Southern blot analysis showed that pKJ50 accumulates an ssDNA intermediate, suggesting that it replicates by a rolling-circle mechanism. Upstream of ORFI, three sets of repeated sequences resembling iteron structures of related plasmids were identified. ORFIII encodes a protein with a pI of 10.97. It also shows a high level of amino acid sequence similarity with some plasmid mobilization proteins. Upstream of ORFIII, a 12 bp stretch resembles an oriT DNA sequence with inverted repeats identical to those found in conjugative plasmids. Hydropathy plot analysis of ORFII, encoding an acidic protein (pI = 4.95), suggests it is a transmembrane protein. Several interesting palindromic sequences, repeat sequences and hairpin-loop structures around ORFI, which might confer regulatory effects on the replication of the plasmid, were also noted. Reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) and in vitro translation confirmed the expression of ORFI and ORFII. RT-PCR produced amplified DNA fragments of the expected sizes, corresponding to ORFI and ORFII. However, no RT-PCR product corresponding to ORFIII was obtained. In vitro translation showed protein bands of the expected sizes, corresponding to each ORF. A shuttle vector capable of transforming Bifidobacterium animalis MB209 was constructed by cloning pKJ50 and a chloramphenicol resistance gene into pBR322.

Use of waste Chinese cabbage as a substrate for yeast biomass production.

The possibility of using waste Chinese cabbage (Brassica campestris) as a substrate for microbial biomass production was investigated. The juice from waste Chinese cabbage contains relatively high amounts of reducing sugars suitable for yeast culture. The cell mass and protein content of four species of yeast, Candida utilis, Pichia stipitis, Kluyveromyces marxianus, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, were determined when cultured in juice extracted from cabbage waste. Compared to YM broth containing the same level of sugar, all the strains except C. utilis showed higher total protein production in cabbage juice medium (CJM).

Oral administration of ginsenoside Rh1 inhibits the development of atopic dermatitis-like skin lesions induced by oxazolone in hairless mice

In the present study, we examined the inhibitive effect of ginsenoside Rh1 on oxazolone-induced atopic dermatitis-like skin lesions in hairless mice. Oral administration of ginsenoside Rh1 improved clinical symptoms, and it was confirmed by histophathological analysis. In ginsenoside Rh1 (20mg/kg) group, ear swellings and ear weights were significantly lower than the control group. Moreover, elevation of IL-6 and total IgE levels in serum were suppressed by ginsenoside Rh1 (20mg/kg). In addition, ginsenoside Rh1 (20mg/kg) significantly increased mRNA expression of IFNγ and Foxp3, and slightly decreased IL-4 expression in draining lymph nodes. The results suggest that ginsenoside Rh1 can alleviate inflammatory symptoms in atopic dermatitis (AD) by reduction of IgE and IL-6 levels in peripheral blood, increase of Foxp3 expression in draining lymph nodes and suppression of inflammation in skin regions. Indeed, ginsenoside Rh1 exhibited therapeutic possibility in immune disorders.

Secretion of Recombinant Pediocin PA-1 by Bifidobacterium longum, Using the Signal Sequence for Bifidobacterial α-Amylase

ABSTRACT A recombinant DNA, encoding the chimeric protein of the signal sequence for bifidobacterial α-amylase mature pediocin PA-1, was introduced into Bifidobacterium longum MG1. Biologically active pediocin PA-1 was successfully secreted from the strain and showed bactericidal activity against Listeria monocytogenes and the same molecular mass as native pediocin PA-1.

Probiotics in Primary Prevention of Atopic Dermatitis

The incidence of allergic diseases has been increasing in industrialized countries during recent years. Although several environmental factors are thought be involved, lack of moderate level of microbial challenges during the infantile period is known to skew the immune status toward the development of allergic diseases. Various strains of probiotics such as Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, and Lactococcus have been assessed for their ability to suppress the occurrence of atopic dermatitis (AD) in animal models and human studies. Although the effect of probiotics on allergic responses is different depending on the strains, doses, and experimental protocols, animal studies generally have shown immunomodulatory activities of probiotics including suppression of specific or nonspecific IgE production, reduction of infiltrated eosinophils and degranulated mast cells, potentiation of regulatory T cell cytokines such as IL-10 and TGF-beta relative to IL-4 and IL-5, and potentiation of Th1/Th2 activity along with reduced symptoms of AD. Several well-designed double-blind placebo-controlled human studies showed that some probiotic strains administered during perinatal period prevented the occurrence of AD but could not consistently show a reduction in specific or nonspecific IgE or a change in specific immunomodulatory cytokines. Taken together, published results suggest that the administration of selected strains of probiotics during the perinatal period may be helpful in the prevention of AD.