Stimulation of macrophages by immunobiotic Lactobacillus strains: influence beyond the intestinal tract

MARRANZINO GABRIELA; VILLENA JULIO; SALVA SUSANA; ALVAREZ SUSANA

MICROBIOLOGY AND IMMUNOLOGY

WILEY-BLACKWELL PUBLISHING, INC

Lugar: Londres; Año: 2012

0385-5600

Lactobacillus rhamnosus CRL1505 (Lr1505), L. rhamnosus CRL1506 (Lr1506) and L. casei CRL431 (Lc431) are able to stimulate intestinal immunity, but only Lr1505 and Lc431 are able to stimulate immunity in the respiratory tract. With the aim of advancing in the understanding of the immunological mechanisms involved in the stimulation of distant mucosal sites, this study evaluated the effect of orally administered probiotics on alveolar and peritoneal macrophages function. The three lactobacilli were able to significantly increase phagocytic and microbicidal activities of peritoneal macrophages when compared with the control group. After the intraperitoneal challenge with pathogenic Candida albicans, mice treated with immunobiotics showed significantly lower pathogen counts in infected organs. Moreover, lactobacilli treated mice showed an improved immune response against C. albicans. On the other hand, only Lc1505 and Lc431 were able to improve activity and cytokines production by alveolar macrophages. Moreover, only these two groups showed a higher resistance to the respiratory challenge with C. albicans, which correlated with an improved respiratory immune response. From the results of this study, we suggest that the consumption of some probiotic strains could be useful for improving resistance to infections in sites distant from the gut by increasing the activity of macrophages.