Probiotics

The GI tract is a persistent battleground between organisms that benefit or harm the human host.  The notion that probiotic foods, such as yogurt, can tip the balance toward benefit has long seemed promising, but persuasive evidence has been slow to prove that point.  Scientists at Northwestern University, however, have recently shown that a deleted gene in an engineered strain of Lactobacillus acidophilius enhanced immune response in mice without triggering harmful inflammation.  These mice had a murine form of Crohn’s disease. While the idea of genetically altered probiotic flora in humans is yet to be tested, it could pose a breakthrough for nutritional strategies for inflammatory bowel diseases and even colon cancer.             MORE

Image Credit:   PNAS and Technology Review