Dear Friends
We have seen that the veterinary probiotics used for probiotic applications in terrestrial animals do not actually deliver what it is thought ot be. We saw one such bacteria actually disappearing from the gut within a week after witdrawal. This raises doubts as to the suitability of probiotic proliferation site, the gut. Also we saw a probiotic species that produced good effects in one species of fish, faile in another (little different in feeding habits) species.
All these lead us to a point to think of more research inot autochthonous probiotics than simply borrowing them....
Hi,
Since microbes in the gut of an animal / human /fish are subject to very high levels of competition / selection, each individual develops a unique microflora and most probiotics will eventually be displaced by the hosts natural gut population. For this reason its normal to administer probiotics daily and this approach can yield extremely good results.
In our work with aqauculture in closed bodies of water we feel that the work done by the probiotics in the water column can be as important as the work done in the gut.
Yes, Mr.Azad, you are right. I have developed quite a few probiotics for aquaculture. It is time that teaches many things. Initially like anyone, I did use Lactobacillus spp. as probiotics to work in the gut of fishes and shrimp. Then i found that they really do not cononize the gut. The gut microbes are not universally the same. To develop a good probiotics, we need to go to nature first. To study the normal gut flora is more important. Then we need to find out what each does.
Now our research is towards that direction. Anyone willing to collaborate is welcome.
Why when so much is written about probiotics so little about the gut flora of the wild species is surprising me. I emphasize that there is not much of use in studying the cultured species in ponds for gut flora, as they are changed according to the cultured conditions and on the probiotics formulations on which they are fed.
Hi Alberto,
The water column research work was all done some time ago, mostly by David Moriarty and Adam Body and I believe that you'll find it on Medline.
Of all the probiotics used in humans, terrestrial animals and aquatic animals there's only one successful application that I know of where the probiotic organism becomes a permanent resident in the recipient animal's digestive system. Thats an organism that is given to cattle which becomes resident in the rumen and allows them to detoxify a shrub that would otherwise make them unwell. In fact only about 10% of the herd are given a one-off inoculation and the others aquire it via contact. This is extremely unusual, in most successful applications that I know of the probiotics are administered repeatedly, usually daily. However it is possible sometimes to get good results from a single high-dose administration, especially in cases where animals are subject to stressful events, such as induction of cattle into a feedlot.
An associate of mine developed a lactobacillus probiotic for poultry by screening hundreds of chicken gut isolates. His product is now available commercially in the US, but his customers have found that it works very well in other species, including fish. For this reason I'm not persuaded by the idea that probiotics must besourced from the gut of the animal species concerned. Other practical matters tend to dominate eg Lactobacillus, Bifidobacteria and the like are delicate organisms and even in dried form aren't usually robust-enough to survive in the processing conditions used to make many feeds eg fish feed. Bacterial spores especially those from Bacillus spp are another story and Ganeden are now commericalising their application in processed human foods such as baked goods (biscuits etc).
BTW I have on my bookshelf a catalogue from a very well-known international supplier of hatchery equipment which promotes a probiotic product containing an organism names as "C. botulinum"! Any takers?
with best regards.........Kevin.
It might have been Clostidium butyricum and the person could have wrongly written it. It is true that some times some furious orgnaisms are added to the formulation without justification. I have seen a fish probiotics which has B.thuriengiensis.
As far as using Lactobacillus or bifidobacterium, I have nothing against. The point I raise is why not we study with open mind how these host organisms benefit in nature. I always believe that there is a lot of new things we need to learn still.
Dear Kevin, the probiotics story about Synergistes jonesii and the plant Leucaena are indeed classical. For someone who is interested to read more on this, I give a link from FAO here:
http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPC/doc/Publicat/Gutt-shel/x5556e0m.htm
This story itself goes to prove that it is important and interesting to do a bioprospecting to find yet many new probiotic species.
The same story pave way for new prebiotics research too. How food habbits influence the gut flora has been our interest for some time.
Inulin is a widely talked about prebiotics. It is made of Fructose oligosaccharide. It is not digested by our digestive enzymes but it promotes growth of probiotic organisms.
Both added together, people have moved now to Synbiotics (Probiotics + Prebiotics). Thanks Mr.Azad for starting this discussion.
Marcel Roberfroid in 1995 identified that a few substances can help the probioti organisms to selectively grow and they do not undergo digestion in the gut of the host. He defined it in the following way: "A prebiotic is a selectively fermented ingredient that allows specific changes, both in the composition and/or activity in the gastrointestinal microflora that confers benefits upon host well-being and health"
They are in general fibrous carbohydrates such as Fructose Oligo Saccharides (FOS) and Galacto Oligo Saccharides (GOS). FOS is found in Inulin a substance present in Chicory tuber as welll as Jerusalem Artichoke. Other than helping the growth of probiotic organisms such as Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium, they are also useful as fibre. Their use is also attributed to mineral absorbption, improving bowel pH, immunostimulation, etc.
Cobination of Prebiotics and Probiotics is called Synbiotics. Personally I feel, there is a lot of scope on Prebiotics and Synbiotics research. I believe the foods do influence microbial growth and hence we might correlate substances which enhance certain type of bacteria in the gut and need not be restricted to only carbohydrates.
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