Probiotic colonisation mechanism discovered
Posted 11 months ago by Jacob in General Health News
Researchers at the University College Cork, Ireland have discovered the genes in Bifidobacterium that are responsible for efficient colonisation of the gut. The team of scientists were able to sequence the DNA of Bifidobacterium breve UCC2003 which revealed the bacteria produces finger-like appendages, known as tight adherence (Tad) pili, which enables it to adhere to the epithelial lining of the gut and form colonies. The research team then used the Bifidobacterium breve UCC2003 strain as a template to identify genes groups (locus) across the Bifidobacteria genera. They were able to positively identify the locus group that produced the Tad pili in the genomes of every Bifidobacteria strain they sequenced. More interestingly, the Tad pili were found to only be activated whilst inside a host. The bacteria did not activate the Tad pili when grown in lab conditions. Research leader, Dr. Mary O'Connell Motherway explained, "From this finding the researchers were able to determine that there is a signal received by the Bifidobacterium when in a host, which turn on the pili, however we don't know, as yet, what that signal is." Dr O'Connell Motherway added that these findings could have major applications in the infant formula and functional food industries. The scientists will now focus on understanding the full functions of the Tad pili, as well as investigating the ways in which they are regulated and activated.
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Reference: O'Connell Motherway, M. et al. (2011) Functional genome analysis of Bifidobacterium breve UCC2003 reveals type IVb tight adherence (Tad) pili as an essential and conserved host-colonization factor. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) Published online ahead of print
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