Abstract
Bifidobacterium bifidum BGN4 is a probiotic strain that has been used as a major ingredient to produce nutraceutical products and as a dairy starter since 2000. The various bio-functional effects and potential for industrial application of B. bifidum BGN4 has been characterized and proven by in vitro (i.e., phytochemical bio-catalysis, cell adhesion and anti-carcinogenic effects on cell lines, and immunomodulatory effects on immune cells), in vivo (i.e., suppressed allergic responses in mouse model and anti-inflammatory bowel disease), and clinical studies (eczema in infants and adults with irritable bowel syndrome). Recently, the investigation of the genome sequencing was finished and this data potentially clarifies the biochemical characteristics of B. bifidum BGN4 that possibly illustrate its nutraceutical functionality. However, further systematic research should be continued to gain insight for academic and industrial applications so that the use of B. bifidum BGN4 could be expanded to result in greater benefit. This review deals with multiple studies on B. bifidum BGN4 to offer a greater understanding as a probiotic microorganism available in functional food ingredients. In particular, this work considers the potential for commercial application, physiological characterization and exploitation of B. bifidum BGN4 as a whole.
Highlights
The term functional foods and/or nutraceuticals can be defined as certain foods reserving bioactive compounds that likely have beneficial effects in the body beyond basal nutritional ingredients [1,2]
According to USA Food and Drug Administration (FDA) [3], “terms such as functional foods or nutraceuticals are widely used in the marketplace and these are regulated by FDA under the authority of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, even though they are not defined by law”
They concluded that the prevalence of eczema can be statistically significantly decreased by BGN4 treatment compared to its counter placebo group
Summary
The term functional foods and/or nutraceuticals can be defined as certain foods reserving bioactive compounds that likely have beneficial effects in the body beyond basal nutritional ingredients (i.e., carbohydrate, protein and fat) [1,2]. Individual results from multiple studies had a little variation, it was clear that B. bifidum is considered a dominant species of gut population in healthy breast-fed infants This distinctive ecological feature of B. bifidum spp. attracted microbiologists’ interests. Potential benefits of BGN4 include: (i) notable colon cell binding properties [26,27]; (ii) improved immune function [28,29,30,31,32,33,34]; (iii) anti-tumor effects [27,35,36]; (iv) aid in bioconversion of phytochemicals [37,38,39,40,41]; and (v) production of biogenic metabolites [42,43]. Sci. 2016, 17, 1544 analysis and changed physicochemical attributes of BGN4 and the effect of altered culture conditions that were studied for the purpose of commercial manipulation
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