CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Lactic acid bacteria have various beneficial effects on human health and are biotechnologically and commercially important for the wellness industry. With the aim of developing a new functional food able to improve intestinal and respiratory immunity we evaluated the immunostimulatory activities of several lactobacilli from the CERELA culture collection. Among the strains, Lactobacillus rhamnosus CRL1505 (Lr1505) was able to stimulate innate and adaptive immune responses in the gut in a dose-dependent way and to improve resistance against Salmonella typhimurium infection. Lr1505 was also capable to increase resistance of immunocompetent and immunocompromised malnourished mice against pneumococcal respiratory infection. Considering that common respiratory infectious diseases continue to be a major cause of death among preschool children in developing countries, and that the identification of feasible strategies to combat this disease burden is an important public health need, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of Lr1505 on the health of children. Clinical studies were performed in 298 preschool infants and supported by Argentina and Tucuman governments. Healthy children, 2 to 5 years of age, attending daycare centers in Tucuman (Argentina) were recruited into the study with parents? written consents. This was a randomized-controlled double-blind clinical trial in which a yogurt containing the probiotic Lr1505 was administered to children for 6 months (five times a week). Results were statistically evaluated and compared with a similar population of children from the same community center that received a placebo yogurt (without probiotic) with similar characteristics. Administration of Lr1505 to young children reduced the incidence of infections: 66% of children in the placebo group presented symptoms of infection while only 34% of cases were detected in the Lr1505 group. Significant differences (p

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