In this research scientists have sequenced the DNA of
Bifidobacterium breve UCC2003 and shown for the first time that bifidobacteria
produce finger-like appendages called TAD pili that allow them to colonise the
gut. The presence of TAD pili in all bifidobacteria suggests a common mechanism
for colonisation.
This research, funded by Science Foundation Ireland, is a
culmination of several years work by the researchers led by Dr Mary
O’Connell-Motherway and Professor
Douwe van Sinderen at the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, University
College Cork. The scientists have become leaders in the field of functional
genomics of probiotic Bifidobacteria.
“The identification of TAD pili is a significant step
towards understanding the interaction between bifidobacteria and their host and
how the microbiota influences gastrointestinal health” said Professor Fergus
Shanahan, Professor and Chairman of the department of Medicine and Director of
the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, University College Cork.
Probiotics are live microbes which, when ingested, have a
beneficial effect on the host.
They have been shown to protect against infection, inflammation and
atopic disease, and they can be delivered as capsules or in foods. Bifidobacterium breve UCC2003 is a
bifidobacterium which was isolated from the stool of a newborn.
Bifidobacteria are among the first colonisers of the sterile
gastrointestinal tract of newborns and are numerically dominant in the gut of
healthy breast-fed infants until weaning. Colonisation of the newborn gut by
microbes is believed to play an essential role in metabolism, in resisting
pathogen colonisation, in the maturation of the intestine and in education of
the immune system.
The perceived health benefits of bifidobacteria have led to
their widespread incorporation in infant food formulations and other
health-promoting probiotic foods.
Despite commercial and scientific interests fundamental knowledge is
still scarce regarding the exact molecular mechanisms by which bifidobacteria
contribute to host health and well-being. This scientific knowledge is
essential to scientifically explain the purported health benefits, and support
the inclusion of such bacteria as probiotics in functional foods.
Picture: Dr Mary O’Connell-Motherway and Professor Douwe van Sinderen at the Alimentary
Pharmabiotic Centre, UCC
<<Previous ItemNext Item>>
« Back to 2011 Press Releases
