Abstract
Optimal gut motility is central to bowel function and gut health. The link between the gut dysmotility related disorders and dysfunctional-intestinal barriers has led to a hypothesis that certain probiotics could help in normalizing gut motility and maintain gut health. This review investigates the roles of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis HN019 (B. lactis HN019™) on gut health, and its mechanisms of action in various pre-clinical and clinical studies. Research supports the hypothesis that B. lactis HN019™ has a beneficial role in maintaining intestinal barrier function during gastrointestinal infections by competing and excluding potential pathogens via different mechanisms; maintaining normal tight junction function in vitro; and regulating host immune defense toward pathogens in both in vitro and human studies. This has been observed to lead to reduced incidence of diarrhea. Interestingly, B. lactis HN019™ also supports normal physiological function in immunosenescent elderly and competes and excludes potential pathogens. Furthermore, B. lactis HN019™ reduced intestinal transit time and increased bowel movement frequency in functional constipation, potentially by modulating gut–brain–microbiota axis, mainly via serotonin signaling pathway, through short chain fatty acids derived from microbial fermentation. B. lactis HN019™ is thus a probiotic that can contribute to relieving gut dysmotility related disorders.
Highlights
Bowel function plays a central role in gut health and overall well-being
Regardless of the variations caused by different quantitative techniques, given the observations that B. lactis/bifidobacteria was/were not detected in the control group [24] or counts decreased after the cessation of the supplementation [35, 58], it is highly likely that B. lactis/bifidobacteria detected in the probiotic group in these studies was B. lactis HN019TM
The above review has shown that B. lactis HN019TM has several health benefits in this area, in particular in the area of bowel function and intestinal motility
Summary
Bowel function plays a central role in gut health and overall well-being. A healthy gut involves many factors, including intact epithelial barrier function, homeostatic intestinal microbiota, optimal functioning digestive organs (stomach, liver/gallbladder, pancreas), and definitely optimal gut motility. Not stipulated in the definition, it is often assumed that probiotic strains should be able to survive passage through the digestive system, transiently colonize in the GIT, and potentially modulate host factors, such as immune responses, digestion, or the intestinal microbiota composition and/or activity These probiotic attributes may be observed more pronounced in subjects with suboptimal physiological status but are often not observed in the healthy subjects. Regardless of the variations caused by different quantitative techniques, given the observations that B. lactis/bifidobacteria was/were not detected in the control group [24] or counts decreased after the cessation of the supplementation [35, 58], it is highly likely that B. lactis/bifidobacteria detected in the probiotic group in these studies was B. lactis HN019TM These studies suggest that B. lactis HN019TM could survive and transiently persist in intestinal transit in both short-term (2–4 weeks) and long-term (>6 months) dietary interventions in almost all age groups, including infants, toddlers, pre-school children, adults, and elderly. This, notwithstanding a high inter-individual variability (0.1–68.8%) of B. lactis HN019TM colonies quantified by strainspecific probes from total fecal bifidobacteria was reported
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
