Plasma Amino Acid Response to Whey Protein Ingestion Following 28 Days of Probiotic (Bacillus subtilis DE111) Supplementation in Active Men and Women.

Jeremy R Townsend,Claudia M Boot,Cheryle N Beuning,Kent D Johnson,William C Vantrease,Megan D Jones,Allison A Haase,Philip A Sapp

doi:10.3390/jfmk6010001

Abstract

We sought to determine if 28 days of probiotic supplementation influenced the plasma amino acid (AA) response to acute whey protein feeding. METHODS: Twenty-two recreationally active men (n = 11; 24.3 ± 3.2 yrs; 89.3 ± 7.2 kg) and women (n = 11; 23.0 ± 2.8 yrs; 70.2 ± 15.2 kg) participated in this double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized study. Before (PRE) and after 28 days of supplementation (POST), participants reported to the lab following a 10-hr fast and provided a resting blood draw (0 min), then subsequently consumed 25 g of whey protein. Blood samples were collected at 15-min intervals for 2 h post-consumption (15–120 min) and later analyzed for plasma leucine, branched-chain AA (BCAA), essential AA (EAA), and total AA (TAA). Participants received a probiotic (PROB) consisting of 1 x10-9 colony forming units (CFU) Bacillus subtilis DE111 (n = 11) or a maltodextrin placebo (PL) (n = 11) for 28 days. Plasma AA response and area under the curve (AUC) values were analyzed via repeated measures analysis of variance. RESULTS: Our analysis indicated no significant (p < 0.05) differential responses for plasma leucine, BCAA, EAA, or TAA between PROB and PL from PRE to POST. AUC analysis revealed no group × time interaction for plasma leucine (p = 0.524), BCAA (p = 0.345), EAA (p = 0.512), and TAA (p = 0.712). CONCLUSION: These data indicate that 28 days of Bacillus subtilis DE111 does not affect plasma AA appearance following acute whey protein ingestion.

Highlights

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.license.Probiotics are living organisms that when consumed provide a health benefit to the host through their effects on the intestinal tract
Bacillus subtilis strains have been reported to strengthen the intestinal barrier through upregulation of tight junction proteins (TJs), reducing inflammatory cytokine release, and attenuating gut membrane barrier damage in in vitro models [8,9]
Twenty-four participants were initially recruited for this investigation, of which two were removed before analysis (PROB = 1, PL = 1), for a final of 22 participants in the analysis (Table 1)

Summary

Introduction

Probiotics are living organisms that when consumed provide a health benefit to the host through their effects on the intestinal tract. Administration of beneficial bacteria by the use of probiotics has been shown to promote mucosal and epithelial health of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, providing a barrier excluding and eliminating various antigens. Evidence suggests that probiotics are an effective strategy to delay or prevent upper respiratory tract infections [1,2,3], reduce indices of GI discomfort during exercise [4], and improve carbohydrate utilization during prolonged cycling [5]. Bacillus subtilis prevented a decrease in intestinal villi height while maintaining mucosal thickness and TJ protein expression following forced treadmill running [10].

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Results

Conclusion