In Vitro Evaluation of Postbiotics Produced from Bacterial Isolates Obtained from Rainbow Trout and Nile Tilapia against the Pathogens Yersinia ruckeri and Aeromonas salmonicida subsp. salmonicida

The use of antibiotics in aquaculture leads to the proliferation of multidrug-resistant bacteria, and an urgent need for developing new alternatives to prevent and control disease has, thus, arisen. In this scenario, postbiotics represent a promising tool to achieve this purpose; thus, in this study, isolation and selection of bacteria to further produce and evaluate their postbiotics antibacterial activity against fish pathogens was executed. In this respect, bacterial isolates from rainbow trout and Nile tilapia were obtained and tested in vitro against Yersinia ruckeri and Aeromonas salmonicida subsp. salmonicida. From 369 obtained isolates, 69 were selected after initial evaluation. Afterwards, additional screening was carried out by spot-on-lawn assay to finally select twelve isolates; four were identified as Pediococcus acidilactici, seven as Weissella cibaria, and one as Weissella paramesenteroides by matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization, time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). Selected bacteria were used to obtain postbiotic products to test their antagonistic activity through coculture challenge and broth microdilution assays. The influence of incubation time prior to postbiotic production on antagonistic behavior was also recorded. Two isolates identified as W. cibaria were able to significantly reduce (p < 0.05) A. salmonicida subsp. salmonicida's growth in the coculture challenge up to 4.49 ± 0.05 Log CFU/mL, and even though the reduction in Y. ruckeri was not as effective, some inhibition on the pathogen's growth was reported; at the same time, most of the postbiotic products obtained showed more antibacterial activity when obtained from broth cultures incubated for 72 h. Based on the results obtained, the preliminary identification of the isolates that expressed the highest inhibitory activity was confirmed by partial sequencing as W. cibaria. Through our study, it can be concluded that postbiotics produced by these strains are useful to inhibit the growth of the pathogens and could, thereby, be applicable in further research to develop suitable tools as feed additives for disease control and prevention in aquaculture.

Effects of oral probiotic and lactoferrin interventions on iron-zinc homeostasis, oxidant/antioxidant equilibrium and diarrhoea incidence of neonatal piglets

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of early-life host specific probiotic and lactoferrin (LF) supplementations on diarrhoea incidence, iron (Fe)-zinc (Zn) balance and antioxidant capabilities in serum of neonatal piglets. A total of eight sow litters obtained from parity matched sows were randomly divided into four groups and assigned to one of the four interventions: control (2.0 ml normal saline), bovine lactoferrin (bLF) (100 mg bLF in normal saline), probiotic (Pb) (1×109 cfu of swine origin Pediococcus acidilactici FT28 strain) and bLF+Pb (both 100 mg bLF and 1×109 cfu of P. acidilactici FT28). All the piglets received supplementations once daily orally for first 7 days of life. The incidence of diarrhoea markedly decreased in bLF group compared to control group. Notably, no incidences of diarrhoea were recorded in Pb and bLF+Pb groups. The Zn and Fe concentrations were significantly increased from day 7 to 21 in bLF and on day 21 in bLF+Pb group. No such changes were noted in Pb group. Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in serum was significantly increased on days 7 and 15 in bLF group and on days 7 and 21 in bLF+Pb group. Malonaldehyde concentration was markedly reduced from day 7 to 21 in bLF and bLF+Pb groups. The concentrations of nitrate on days 15 and 21 and malonaldehyde on day 7 were significantly higher in Pb group, but mean TAC was unaltered from day 0 to 21. Although no correlation between the incidence of diarrhoea and Zn/Fe and oxidant/antioxidant homeostasis was noted in the Pb group, the supplementation of P. acidilactici FT28 alone was sufficient to prevent the incidence of diarrhoea in neonatal piglets. Taken together, it is concluded that strategic supplementation of P. acidilactici FT28 in early life could help in preventing diarrhoea until weaning of piglets.

A Class IIb Bacteriocin Plantaricin NC8 Modulates Gut Microbiota of Different Enterotypes in vitro

The gut microbiota is engaged in multiple interactions affecting host health. Bacteriocins showed the ability of impeding the growth of intestinal pathogenic bacteria and modulating gut microbiota in animals. Few studies have also discovered their regulation on human intestinal flora using an in vitro simulated system. However, little is known about their effect on gut microbiota of different enterotypes of human. This work evaluated the modification of the gut microbiota of two enterotypes (ET B and ET P) by the class IIb bacteriocin plantaricin NC8 (PLNC8) by using an in vitro fermentation model of the intestine. Gas chromatography results revealed that PLNC8 had no influence on the gut microbiota’s production of short-chain fatty acids in the subjects’ samples. PLNC8 lowered the Shannon index of ET B’ gut microbiota and the Simpson index of ET P’ gut microbiota, according to 16S rDNA sequencing. In ET B, PLNC8 enhanced the abundance of Bacteroides, Bifidobacterium, Megamonas, Escherichia-Shigella, Parabacteroides, and Lactobacillus while decreasing the abundance of Streptococcus. Prevotella_9, Bifidobacterium, Escherichia-Shigella, Mitsuokella, and Collinsella were found more abundant in ET P. The current study adds to our understanding of the impact of PLNC8 on the human gut microbiota and lays the groundwork for future research into PLNC8’s effects on human intestinal disease.

The Probiotic Properties of Lactic Acid Bacteria and Their Applications in Animal Husbandry

The intestinal tract of animals is a complex ecosystem in which nutrients, microbiota and host cells interact extensively. Probiotics can be considered as part of the natural microbiota of the gut and are involved in improving homeostasis. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) is a general term for a class of non-spore forming, gram-positive bacteria whose main product of fermented sugar is lactic acid. LAB are considered to be a type of probiotic due to their health-promoting effects on the host, and are very effective in the treatment of human and animal diseases. LAB have been widely used as a class of microbial agents in the field of livestock and poultry breeding. They are also considered to be the best substitutes for antibiotics to improve animal health. Here, we review the biological functions, probiotic characteristics and applications of LAB in livestock and poultry breeding. This review is designed to provide a theoretical base for the in-depth exploration and promotion of LAB use in animal diets.

Wildlife symbiotic bacteria are indicators of the health status of the host and its ecosystem

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are gut symbionts that can be used as a model to understand the host-microbiota crosstalk under unpredictable environmental conditions such as wildlife ecosystems. The aim of this study was to determine whether viable LAB can be informative of the health status of wild boar populations. We monitored the genotype and phenotype of LAB based on markers that included safety and phylogenetic origin, antibacterial activity and immunomodulatory properties. A LAB profile dominated by lactobacilli appears to stimulate protective immune responses and relates to strains widely used as probiotics, resulting in a potentially healthy wildlife population whereas microbiota overpopulated by enterococci was observed in a hostile environment. These enterococci were closely related to pathogenic strains that have developed mechanisms to evade innate immune system, posing a potential risk for the host health. Furthermore, our LAB isolates displayed antibacterial properties in a species-dependent manner. Nearly all of them were able to inhibit bacterial pathogens, raising the possibility of using them as a la carte antibiotic alternative in the unexplored field of wildlife disease mitigation. Our study highlights that microbiological characterization of LAB is a useful indicator of wildlife health status and the ecological origin from which they derive. Significance Statement The wildlife symbiotic microbiota is an important component to the greater for greater diversity and functionality of their bacterial populations, influencing the host health and adaptability to its ecosystem. Although many microbes are partly responsible for the development of multiple physiological processes, only certain bacterial groups such as lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have the capacity to overpopulate the gut, promoting health (or disease) when specific genetic and environmental conditions are present. LAB have been exploited in many ways due to their probiotic properties, in particular lactobacilli, however their relationship with wildlife gut-associated microbiota hosts remains to be elucidated. On the other hand, it is unclear whether LAB such as enterococci, which have been associated with detrimental health effects, could lead to disease. These important questions have not been properly addressed in the field of wildlife, and therefore, should be clearly attained.

Antimicrobial potential of bacteriocins in poultry and swine production

The routine use of antibiotics in agriculture has contributed to an increase in drug-resistant bacterial pathogens in animals that can potentially be transmitted to humans. In 2000, the World Health Organization identified resistance to antibiotics as one of the most significant global threats to public health and recommended that the use of antibiotics as additives in animal feed be phased out or terminated, particularly those used to treat human infections. Research is currently being carried out to identify alternative antimicrobial compounds for use in animal production. A number of studies, mostly in vitro, have provided evidence indicating that bacteriocins, which are antimicrobial peptides of bacterial origin, may be promising alternatives to conventional antibiotics in poultry and swine production. This review provides an update on bacteriocins and their potential for use in the poultry and swine industries.

Bacteriocin production and different strategies for their recovery and purification

Bacteriocins from lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are a diverse group of antimicrobial proteins/peptides, offering potential as biopreservatives, and exhibit a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity at low concentrations along with thermal as well as pH stability in foods. High bacteriocin production usually occurs in complex media. However, such media are expensive for an economical production process. For effective use of bacteriocins as food biopreservatives, there is a need to have heat-stable wide spectrum bacteriocins produced with high-specific activity in food-grade medium. The main hurdles concerning the application of bacteriocins as food biopreservatives is their low yield in food-grade medium and time-consuming, expensive purification processes, which are suitable at laboratory scale but not at industrial scale. So, the present review focuses on the bacteriocins production using complex and food-grade media, which mainly emphasizes on the bacteriocin producer strains, media used, different production systems used and effect of different fermentation conditions on the bacteriocin production. In addition, this review emphasizes the purification processes designed for efficient recovery of bacteriocins at small and large scale.

Effect of supplementation of yeast with bacteriocin and Lactobacillus culture on growth performance, cecal fermentation, microbiota composition, and blood characteristics in broiler chickens

Objective

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of yeast with bacteriocin and Lactobacillus cultures (mixture of Lactobacillus agilis BCRC 10436 and Lactobacillus reuteri BCRC 17476) supplements, alone or in combination, on broiler chicken performance.

Methods

A total of 300, 1-d-old healthy broiler chickens were randomly divided into five treatment groups: i) basal diet (control), ii) basal diet+0.25% yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) (YC), iii) basal diet+0.25% yeast with bacteriocin (BA), iv) basal diet+Lactobacillus cultures (LAB), and v) basal diet +0.25% yeast with bacteriocin+Lactobacillus cultures (BA+LAB). Growth performance, cecal microbiota, cecal fermentation products, and blood biochemistry parameters were determined when chickens were 21 and 35 d old.

Results

The supplementation of YC, BA, and BA+LAB resulted in a significantly better feed conversion rate (FCR) than that of the control group during 1 to 21 d (p<0.05). The LAB supplementation had a significant effect on the presence of Lactobacillus in the ceca at 35 d. None of the supplements had an effect on relative numbers of L. agilis and L. reuter at 21 d, but the BA supplementation resulted in the decrease of both Lactobacillus strains at 35 d. The BA+LAB supplementation resulted in higher short chain fatty acid (SCFA) in the ceca, but LAB supplementation significantly decreased the SCFA at 35 d (p<0.05). All treatments tended to decrease ammonia concentration in the ceca at 21 d, especially in the LAB treatment group. The BA supplementation alone decreased the triacylglycerol (TG) concentration significantly at 21 d (p<0.05), but the synergistic effect of BA and LAB supplementation was required to reduce the TG concentration at 35 d. The YC supplementation tended to increase the plasma cholesterol at 21 d and 35 d. However, the BA supplementation significantly decreased the cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol level at 35 d. In conclusion, the BA+LAB supplementation was beneficial to body weight gain and FCR of broiler chickens.

Conclusion

The effect of BA and LAB supplementation may be a result of the growth of lactic acid bacteria enhancement and physiological characterization of bacteriocin, and it suggests that the BA and LAB supplementation level or Lactobacillus strain selection should be integrated in future supplementation designs.

Class IIa bacteriocins: diversity and new developments

Class IIa bacteriocins are heat-stable, unmodified peptides with a conserved amino acids sequence YGNGV on their N-terminal domains, and have received much attention due to their generally recognized as safe (GRAS) status, their high biological activity, and their excellent heat stability. They are promising and attractive agents that could function as biopreservatives in the food industry. This review summarizes the new developments in the area of class IIa bacteriocins and aims to provide uptodate information that can be used in designing future research.

Pediocin A improves growth performance of broilers challenged with Clostridium perfringens

The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of the anticlostridial pediocin A from Pediococcus pentosaceus FBB61 to contain negative effects associated to Clostridium proliferation in broilers, through 2 subsequent investigations. In the first study, 36 Ross 508 broilers were divided into 3 groups and fed for 21 d as follows: the control diet (CTR), the control diet supplemented with supernatant filtrate of a culture of P. pentosaceus FBB61-2 (Bac-, isogenic mutant nonproducing pediocin A), and the control diet supplemented with supernatant filtrate of a culture of P. pentosaceus FBB61 (Bac+) containing pediocin A. Birds were challenged with 10(6) cells of Clostridium perfringens. In the second study, 216 Ross 508 broilers were allocated in 18 pens and divided into 3 groups fed the same diet for 42 d: a control group (CTR), a group challenged with 10(8) cells of C. perfringens (CP), and a group challenged with 10(8) cells of C. perfringens and receiving the control diet supplemented with P. pentosaceus FBB61 and pediocin A (PA). Broiler BW, ADG, ADFI, and feed conversion rate were measured throughout the studies. At the end of both experiments, an appropriate number of birds was killed and analyzed for necrotic enteritis lesions and microbiological examinations. In the first study, on d 9, ADG and BW were 20% higher for Bac+ compared with CTR and Bac-; on d 14, ADG was higher for Bac+ (+23%, P<0.05), whereas BW was higher for Bac+ and Bac- compared with CTR (+23 and +14%, respectively; P<0.05). In the second study, on d 14, ADG and BW were higher for PA compared with CTR and CP (+15% on average; P<0.05), whereas between 15 and 42 d, there was only a tendency toward a higher ADG for PA when compared with the CP group (+4%, P=0.08). Diet supplementation with pediocin A improved broiler growth performance during the challenge with C. perfringens and tended to restore the ADG depletion during the 42-d period.