The effect of probiotic bacteria on the adhesion of pathogens to human intestinal mucus

Human intestinal glycoproteins extracted from faeces were used as a model f or intestinal mucus to investigate adhesion of pathogenic Escherichia coli and Salmonella strains, and the effect of probiotics on this adhesion. S-fi mbriated E. coli expressed relatively high adhesion in the mucus model, but the other tested pathogens adhered less effectively. Probiotic strains Lac tobacillus CG and L. rhamnosus LC-705 as well as a L. rhamnosus isolated fr om human faeces were able to slightly reduce S-fimbria-mediated adhesion. A dhesion of S. typhimurium was significantly inhibited by probiotic L.. john sonii LJ1 and L. casei Shirota. Lactobacillus GG and L. rhamnosus (human is olate) increased the adhesion of S. typhimurium suggesting that the pathoge n interacts with the probiotic. (C) 1999 Federation of European Microbiolog ical Societies. Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.