Human mucosal in vivo transcriptome responses to three lactobacilli indicate how probiotics may modulate human cellular pathways

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 108; no. Supplement 1; pp. 4562 - 4569
• Main Authors: van Baarlen, Peter, Troost, Freddy, van der Meer, Cindy, Hooiveld, Guido, Boekschoten, Mark, Brummer, Robert J.M, Kleerebezem, Michiel
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Academy of Sciences 15.03.2011; National Acad Sciences
• Series: Colloquium Paper
• Subjects: Adult; adults; antibiotic-associated diarrhea; atopic disease; Bacteria; Biological Sciences; children; Colloquium Papers; connectivity map; Cross-Over Studies; drugs; expression; Gene Expression Profiling; Gene Expression Regulation; gene regulation; Gene Regulatory Networks; Genes; gut bacteria; Homeostasis; host-microbe interactions; Humans; immune tolerance; intestinal epithelial-cells; intestinal mucosa; Intestinal Mucosa - metabolism; Intestinal Mucosa - microbiology; lactobacillus; Lactobacillus acidophilus; Lactobacillus casei; Lactobacillus rhamnosus; Medicin; Medicine; metaanalysis; Microbiota; Netherlands; placebo-controlled trial; Polymerase Chain Reaction; prevention; Probiotics; small intestine; transcription (genetics); transcriptome; Transcriptomes; transcriptomics; Up regulation; Volunteerism; volunteers; Young Adult; Netherlands
• ISSN: 0027-8424; 1091-6490; 1091-6490
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1000079107

Probiotic bacteria, specific representatives of bacterial species that are a common part of the human microbiota, are proposed to deliver health benefits to the consumer by modulation of intestinal function through largely unknown molecular mechanisms. To explore in vivo mucosal responses of healthy adults to probiotics, we obtained transcriptomes in an intervention study after a double-blind placebo-controlled cross-over design. In the mucosa of the proximal small intestine of healthy volunteers, probiotic strains from the species Lactobacillus acidophilus, L. casei, and L. rhamnosus each induced differential gene-regulatory networks and pathways in the human mucosa. Comprehensive analyses revealed that these transcriptional networks regulate major basal mucosal processes and uncovered remarkable similarity to response profiles obtained for specific bioactive molecules and drugs. This study elucidates how intestinal mucosa of healthy humans perceives different probiotics and provides avenues for rationally designed tests of clinical applications.