Beneficial Lactic Acid Bacteria
K. Balamurugan, U. Prithika in Pocket Guide to Bacterial Infections, 2019
Bacteria in food demonstrate a whole spectrum of properties. Microorganisms transform chemical constituents during food fermentation, enhancing accessibility of nutrients, enriching food flavor and taste, rendering bio-preservative quality, upgrading food safety, and degrading toxic components and anti-nutritive factors (Tamang et al. 2016). They may take part in prevention and treatment of diarrhea, inflammatory bowel disease, allergies, cholesterolemia and lactose intolerance, immunomodulation and cause anticancer effects via diverse mechanisms of action. Moreover, probiotic bacteria produce health-promoting bioactive compounds. Summing up, LAB and bifidobacteria used in food industry should meet certain selection criteria and possess technological properties.
Aspergillus
Dongyou Liu in Laboratory Models for Foodborne Infections, 2017
Aspergillus species can be both beneficial and harmful for mankind. The greatest economic benefit of the genus is the ability to produce industrial enzymes (e.g., amylases, glycosidases, pectinases, proteases), and organic acids (e.g., citric acid, gluconic acid, itaconic acid) [1]. Aspergillus oryzae, A. sojae, and A. tamarii are known as the “koji moulds” and have been used for centuries in oriental food fermentation processes for the production of soy sauce and sake [1]. Aspergilli can also produce a series of secondary metabolites with useful pharmaceutical and biotechnological properties (e.g., the cholesterol-lowering drug lovastatin produced by A. terreus and some other species). However, taxa of this genus may also have serious negative impacts on animal and human health as they cause different diseases called aspergilloses. The most common human pathogen from the genus is A. fumigatus, which is responsible for more than 90% of both invasive and noninvasive human aspergilloses; however, other species of the genus are also capable of causing infections [4]. Various fungal diseases like keratitis or onychomycosis, allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA), and asthma have been reported to be caused by the growth or spores of Aspergillus species (among others). Additionally, Aspergilli produce a range of mycotoxins, which can be harmful to animals and humans. Aspergillus species can contaminate foods and feeds at different pre- and postharvest, as well as processing or handling stages. The most economically important Aspergillus mycotoxins identified as contaminants in foods and feeds are the aflatoxins, ochratoxins, patulin, and fumonisins.
Fungi and Water
Chuong Pham-Huy, Bruno Pham Huy in Food and Lifestyle in Health and Disease, 2022
Yeasts are mainly used in food fermentation for the processing of alcohol beverages such as wine, beer, cider, rum, liquor, and so on. They are also used for baking bread and cakes and making dairy products like cheese, yogurt, and cream. Yeasts are also used in medicine for preparing β-glucan (an immunostimulant), B group vitamins, and amino acids, because yeasts are rich in these nutrients. Some yeasts can produce various drugs such as insulin, interferon, probiotics, and some vaccines. Some yeasts are used to treat intestinal troubles. However, yeasts like Candida albicans are pathogens that can cause oral and vaginal infections.
Cytotoxic and Apoptotic Induction Potential of Extracts from Fermented Citrullus vulgaris Thunb. Seeds on Cervical and Liver Cancer Cells
Published in Journal of Dietary Supplements, 2021
Rachael Aderonke Ayo-Lawal, Omolaja Osoniyi, Nicole Remaliah Samantha Sibuyi, Mervin Meyer, Okobi Ekpo
Food fermentation involves the purposeful addition of edible micro-organisms to food substances in order to enhance palatability, nutritional value, preservative, and medicinal properties. As a result, fermented foods are known to produce bioactive compounds including peptides beyond those found naturally occurring in their un-fermented counterparts (Martins et al. 2011). Some fermented foods containing bioactive peptides are acclaimed to confer a variety of important nutritional and therapeutic benefits including antioxidant, antihypertensive, antimicrobial, immunomodulatory, antithrombotic, opioid, and anti-cancer activities (Hebert et al. 2010). Furthermore, various studies have established the protective effects of some fermented foods against the development of cancer. These include: Kimchi (Park 1995; Hur et al. 2000); Sauerkraut, fermented vegetable of Germany (Kris-Etherton et al. 2002) and fermented wheat germ extract (Mueller and Voigt 2011). Others include: Kefir (Yanping et al. 2009), fermented cabbage and fermented red beet (Farhad et al. 2010).
Fermented Soy Drink (Q-CAN® PLUS) Induces Apoptosis and Reduces Viability of Cancer Cells
Published in Nutrition and Cancer, 2022
Xinshou Ouyang, Yonglin Chen, Boodapati S. Tejaswi, Suyavaran Arumugam, Eric Secor, Theresa R. Weiss, Michael Leapman, Ather Ali
There are several challenges in extending beyond associative studies of fermented foods and cancer, or other health effects of fermented foods. The development of food fermentation processes has mostly been empiric and iterative with little understanding of the biochemical processes involved. Also, the biochemistry is very complicated and for most fermented foods there is not even an accurate quantification of their biochemical constituents, let alone the biochemical pathways that resulted in their production. Finally, many studies use experimental or locally obtained fermented products making confirmation of their findings, and further testing by other groups, almost impossible. We chose to use a widely available fermented soy product (Q-CAN® PLUS), as this would allow for verification and further studies by the wider scientific community.
Effects of intestinal flora on pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs
Published in Drug Metabolism Reviews, 2023
Amina Džidić-Krivić, Jasna Kusturica, Emina Karahmet Sher, Nejra Selak, Nejra Osmančević, Esma Karahmet Farhat, Farooq Sher
Moreover, Zimmermann-Kogadeeva et al. (2020) observed changes in drug kinetics in two groups of animals. The first group of gnotobiotic mice was germ-free and the second group had unaltered microbiota. The study showed a significant reduction of drug in the large intestine in the second group confirming the hypothesis that gut microbiota has the power to alter drug pharmacokinetics. It is important to highlight that this process goes bidirectional, meaning that different drugs could alter the bacteria genera in the gut. On the other hand, gut microbiota could also interfere with drug metabolism and, both indirectly and directly, alter their structure and function in the organism as shown in Figure 3. One of the metabolites that gut microbiota produces from dietary choline, marked as Trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), is associated with major cardiovascular events. In addition, the gut enhances the production of some beneficial molecules through food fermentation and their release into the circulation, such as short chain fatty acids (SCFA). These molecules have strong anti-inflammatory properties and they help to maintain the integrity of the intestinal barrier (Zimmermann-Kogadeeva et al. 2020).