Microencapsulation: an effective oral delivery system for optimal probiotic activity in the gastrointestinal tract

in
Event Reference: 
6th International Symposium on Probiotics

 Laetitia Rodes*, Christopher Martoni, Jasmine Bhathena, Catherine Tomaro-Duchesneau, Michael Coussa-Charley, Satya Prakash1

 
Biomedical Technology and Cell Therapy Research Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering and Artificial Cells and Organs Research Centre, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, 3775 University Street, Montreal, Quebec, H3A 2B4, Canada
1 Corresponding author: satya.prakash@mcgill.ca
 
Introduction: Probiotics are excellent biotherapeutics to modulate the gut microbiota in favor of health-promoting populations of bacteria. The main challenge to reach optimal treatment efficiency is to overcome their poor survival rate in the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Microencapsulation provides living probiotic cells with a physical barrier to protect them from environmental stress conditions. This study aims at defining in vitro and in vivo the suitability and efficacy of alginate-poly-L-lysine-alginate (APA) microencapsulation, one of the most commonly used procedures for encapsulating live cells, to orally deliver probiotics.
 
Methods: We investigated in vitro the tolerance of APA microencapsulated probiotic bacteria to GI rigorous conditions in a dynamic computer-controlled model simulating the human GI tract. Then, the hypocholesterolemic effect of a microencapsulated Lactobacillus fermentum formulation was tested, for 18 weeks,in male Bio F (1)B hamsters fed a high fat diet.
 
Results: In vitro results demonstrated the high survival rate of APA microencapsulated probiotic bacteria when exposed to stomach and intestinal stress conditions. Notably, enhanced enzymatic activity, morphological stability and viability of the selected microencapsulated probiotic were all confirmed. The preclinical trial also confirmed the potential of the orally delivered Lactobacillus fermentum APA microencapsulated formulation for managing hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia.
 
Conclusion: Therefore, microencapsulation offers a promising innovative method for the targeted oral delivery of probiotics to the GI tract. Future experiments should confirm the effectiveness and robustness of this delivery system.