Abstract
Microorganisms have long been used to produce primary and secondary metabolites essential for human health and environmental sustainability. Due to their rapid growth and reproduction rates, as well as their ability to undergo genetic modifications, microorganisms play a critical role in the manufacturing industry. Probiotics, which are non-pathogenic microorganisms, have gained significant interest due to their various health benefits, including treating vitamin deficiencies, alleviating digestive disorders, enhancing immunity, and detoxifying harmful substances. Probiotics are commonly used to address gastrointestinal issues such as inflammatory bowel disease, as well as conditions like obesity, diabetes, constipation, and colon cancer. Despite these applications, recent advancements in understanding the role of probiotics in managing these diseases have been limited. This review presents the latest insights into probiotics’ role in health management. With the growing global population, researchers are focusing on strategies to meet the increasing demand for probiotics. Using advanced techniques, scientists are exploring probiotic strains that can be produced industrially and utilized to treat various medical conditions. This review compiles essential information for probiotic researchers, covering strain selection, production, and applications.
Introduction
Microorganisms are important in our daily lives (Horve et al., 2020). The total number of microorganisms that live in the human body is about 38 trillion (Gupta, 2021; Hoffmann et al., 2016). These microbes are vital for strengthening the immune system, detoxifying any harmful substances from the human body, and generating substances that are needed for the metabolic functions of cells (Abdel-Megeed, 2021; Ashaolu, 2020; Oves et al., 2016). The genera Eubacterium, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, Bacteroides, Fusobacterium, Clostridium, the lactic acid bacteria, Escherichia coli, Peptococcus, and Fusobacterium are mainly responsible for preserving metabolic equilibrium in humans (Middleton et al., 2024; Nazzaro et al., 2015; Wilson, 2018). Antibiotics and statins are treatment agents that substantially decrease the diversity and richness of the human gut microbiome (ChenLi, 2023; Weersma et al., 2020). When these microbial flora get eliminated or reduced, the accumulation of potentially dangerous products can occur, leading to disruptions in the synthesis of vitamins, cell functions, and anabolic and catabolic responses of the host system, all of which are important for the maintenance of the biological system. As a result, probiotic-containing foods and supplements are becoming more and more varied on the market (Dysin et al., 2023; Leghari et al., 2021).
Probiotics have gained significant attention in the medical profession (Singh and Natraj, 2021; Stavropoulou and Bezirtzoglou, 2020). Probiotic research concentrates on studying the characteristics of different probiotic strains (Liu et al., 2020; Shruthi et al., 2022). The incorporation of bacteria that produce lactic acid into dairy products has been shown to enhance the immune response of the host system while generating a more effective therapeutic effect (Hati and Prajapati, 2022; Khaneghah et al., 2020). Different probiotic species , such as Aerococcus, the lactic acid bacteria Tetragenococcus, Lactococcus, Lactobacillus, and Atopobium grow well in the African continent, North America and Central Asian countries (Waziri et al., 2022; Zaghloul, 2024). Probiotic researchers performed investigations on human and animal models utilizing the tools and technologies currently available to show the therapeutic potential and efficacy of different probiotic strains against a broad range of medical diseases (Abouelela and Helmy, 2024; Sharma et al., 2021). Prospective studies and reports from clinical trials have shown that probiotic strains show promise in the management of lactose intolerance, diarrhoea, antibiotic therapy, and colon cancer (Khoruts et al., 2020; Kvakova et al., 2022).
While previous evaluations have focused on individual probiotics and their specific applications (Roe et al., 2022; Zommiti et al., 2020) , this review explores various probiotics and their applications, beginning with an overview of screening, characterization, production, and research on their use. Additionally, we summarize the latest studies on selecting probiotic strains, assessing their production processes, survivability, and potential applications. These factors are crucial for probiotic researchers who are seeking to discover new therapeutic strains.
Selection criteria and requirements for probiotic strains
Probiotic researchers follow mandatory guidelines in order to meet clinical requirements (Liang et al., 2024). In order to follow these guidelines, the strains had to meet safety and functionality requirements (Hazards et al., 2023; Merenstein et al., 2023). These requirements are very important for patient safety and include how the strains were chosen, how they behaved in the digestive tract, how long they lasted, and how well they kept working during production, processing, and storage (Calvigioni et al., 2023; Forsyth et al., 2023). When probiotics are first being screened and chosen, several important factors are evaluated: how well they stick to intestinal epithelial cells; how stable the phenotypes and genotypes are, including the stability of plasmids; how well they can handle bile and acid, as well as their ability to survive and grow; and how well they make antimicrobial compounds (Dell’Anno et al., 2021; Echers et al., 2021). Antibiotic resistance patterns can be attributed to immunogenicity, spoilage organisms, or both (GuptaSharma, 2022; Sharma et al., 2018).
Probiotics with the best health characteristics
The majority of culturable bacteria are highlighted in fermented food products for their health-promoting properties prior to being labelled as probiotics (Kaur et al., 2022; Sharifi -Rad et al., 2020). Lactic acid bacteria, which are found in yogurt, have become the best probiotic supplement of all the culturable microorganisms as they do not contain lipopolysaccharides or dangerous extracellular proteases (AyiviIbrahim, 2022; Moh et al., 2021). This is because of their unique qualities, as noted by the Food and Agriculture Organization (Organization, 2010). Researchers are now becoming more interested in understanding the molecular processes underlying these strains’ ability to treat intestinal disorders due to their mutually beneficial relationship (StavropoulouBezirtzoglou, 2020; Zhao et al., 2023). By liberating both primary and secondary metabolites outside of cells and not restricting them in the periplasm, these strains of bacteria colonized the intestinal tract for a brief period, according to a study that used cutting-edge technology (Chen et al., 2024; PeleCimpeanu, 2012). The investigators used standard strains of Lactobacillus and were inspired by this natural characteristic to design therapeutic probiotics that could deliver molecules to the mucosa directly and would not have any negative impacts on systemic distribution or cause side effects (Shi et al., 2016).
Conclusion
The study highlights that the advantages of medicinal bacterial strains, increasing the possibility for future therapeutic applications. Probiotic bacteria have been shown to use an assortment of strategies, such as immune system modulation and competing for few resources in the gut, to avoid pathogen colonization and promote gut cleansing. The necessity of probiotic strains in therapeutic applications for curing a wide range of disorders has been the subject of more research in recent years. Numerous in vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated a strong relationship between these beneficial microbes and adaptive immune responses, further validating their role in disease prevention and treatment .
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Advances in the probiotic production, innovation, and therapeutic applications in health and nutrition
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https://doi.org/10.24815/tigh.v4i2.42582
