Lactobacilli in the Gastrointestinal Tract

Lactobacilli in the Gastrointestinal Tract. A review of current scientific research, applications and resources.

Bacterial Polysaccharides: Current Innovations and Future Trends

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Lactobacilli in the Gastrointestinal Tract

Adapted from Jens Walter in Probiotics and Prebiotics: Scientific Aspects
Lactobacilli in the Gastrointestinal Tract: The majority of studies on intestinal lactobacilli, especially in the last two decades, have been focused on the behaviour of lactobacilli introduced into the gastrointestinal tract as probiotics and their in vitro characterization. Research on the ecology of lactobacilli naturally present within the complex gastrointestinal microbiota of humans and animals has received much less attention but is a crucial aspect of probiotic research and development. Molecular technologies have facilitated detection and identification of lactobacilli and allowed insight into the occurrence, diversity and dynamics of intestinal Lactobacillus populations. Animal models in combination with biochemical and genetic approaches have been used to reveal the influence of lactobacilli on the host, on microbiota-associated characteristics and on other members of the gut microbiota as well as to identify some bacterial factors that contribute to the ecological performance of lactobacilli in the gut. Functional and comparative genomics have already been carried out for some Lactobacillus strains in order to identify features essential for gut colonization and host-microbe co-existence. Research to decipher these ecological interactions is rewarding because it not only increases fundamental knowledge about the gut ecosystem and bacterial physiology in relation to host welfare but also provides valuable information to select lactobacilli for probiotics and other pharmaceutical applications.

Lactobacilli in the Gastrointestinal Tract Resources

Probiotics and Prebiotics: Scientific Aspects
Foodborne Pathogens: Microbiology and Molecular Biology
Current Issues in Intestinal Microbiology Peer-reviewed journal.
Molecular Methods for Probiotics Research
Taxonomy of Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria
Lactobacilli in the Gastrointestinal Tract
Exopolysaccharide Production by Intestinal Lactobacilli
Genome-wide Analysis of Gut Bacteria
Genetically Modified Probiotics
Prebiotics and the Infant Microbiota
Bacterial Therapeutics
Current Issues in Molecular Biology
Molecular Biology Resource