The potential synergistic behaviour of inter- and intra-genus probiotic combinations in the pattern and rate of short chain fatty acids formation during fibre fermentation.

This study compared the rate of short chain fatty acid (SCFA) production by different probiotic combinations of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium to determine any synergistic effects. Six different fibre fractions were fermented with nine combinations of Lactobacillus rhamnosus (LR), Lactobacillus acidophilus (LA), Bifidobacterium longum (BL) and Bifidobacterium breve (BB) for 0, 6, 24 and 48 h. SCFAs were quantified by gas chromatography. Inter-genus combinations of bacteria produced more SCFA, especially BB + BL + LR, compared to intra-genus that yielded the lowest SCFA production. Acetate was the most abundant, while propionate and butyrate were the most utilised. The SCFA formation was as acetate > propionate > butyrate and the total dietary fibre produced most of the SCFA. Most combinations utilised 60-80% of the fibre; BB + BL + LR digested the fibre completely. The quantity, pattern and the time of release of SCFA depends on the genus, but the combination of pre and probiotics is of great importance for the outcome.

Diabetes and Alzheimer's Disease: Can Tea Phytochemicals Play a Role in Prevention?

Dementia and diabetes mellitus are prevalent disorders in the elderly population. While recognized as two distinct diseases, diabetes has more recently recognized as a significant contributor to risk for developing dementia, and some studies make reference to type 3 diabetes, a condition resulting from insulin resistance in the brain. Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, and diabetes, interestingly, share underlying pathological processes, commonality in risk factors, and, importantly, pathways for intervention. Tea has been suggested to possess potent antioxidant properties. It is rich in phytochemicals including, flavonoids, tannins, caffeine, polyphenols, boheic acid, theophylline, theobromine, anthocyanins, gallic acid, and finally epigallocatechin-3-gallate, which is considered to be the most potent active ingredient. Flavonoid phytochemicals, known as catechins, within tea offer potential benefits for reducing the risk of diabetes and Alzheimer's disease by targeting common risk factors, including obesity, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and stroke. Studies also show that catechins may prevent the formation of amyloid-ß plaques and enhance cognitive functions, and thus may be useful in treating patients who have Alzheimer's disease or dementia. Furthermore, other phytochemicals found within tea offer important antioxidant properties along with innate properties capable of modulating intracellular neuronal signal transduction pathways and mitochondrial function.

The influence of environmental factors on the adhesion of combinations of probiotics to rice fibre fractions.

Nine co-cultures of the Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus species were tested for their ability to adhere to insoluble dietary fibre (IDF1, IDF2), soluble dietary fibre (SDF1, SDF2), and total dietary fibre (TDF1, TDF2) from two rice varieties (RR1 and RR2). Combinations of the same genus (BB + BL and LA + LR) showed 30-40 % (poor) adhesion, and combinations of different genera showed 40-50 % (moderate) adhesion, which is significantly higher (p < 0.05) than the combinations of same genus. The increase in adhesion with species from different genera suggests some synergistic activity. The microbial combinations had the ability to adhere to dietary fibre fractions as early as 30 min. Colonization of rice fibre by bacterial cells was affected by the temperature, with adhesion being higher at 37 °C than at room temperature. The optimal pH value for adhesion was 4.2-4.5. This study observed that the combinations tested had a moderate percentage of adhesion in the presence of bile, low pH (4.3-4.5) and pancreatin, irrespective of the type of co-culture. In addition, adhesion was not affected by an increase in NaCl and Tween 80. Adhesion was affected by disaccharides and polysaccharides. The amount of adhesion of co-cultures was not significantly affected by the substrate (p > 0.05). Results indicated that rice fibre fractions are suitable hosts for the probiotics tested.