Written by Marcia J. Egles, MD. This in vivo study, using a mouse model, demonstrated the significant cholesterol-lowering and anti-hypertensive properties of Lactobacillus helviticus K1113.

probioticsA recent study performed in mice demonstrates the usefulness of a particular species of gut bacterium, Lactobacillus helveticus, in lowering serum cholesterol 1. Lactobacillus helviticus is a heat resistant bacterium widely used as a culture in the dairy industry to ferment milk into yogurt and cheeses.

Several prior studies have reported potential health benefits from the presence of Lactobacillus helveticus in the gut 2-4. These benefits include antimicrobial activity and pathogen antagonism (the “good” Lactobacillus fends off the disease-causing “bad” bacteria), enhancement of nutrient bioavailability, anti-hypertensive activity from the breakdown of milk into bioactive peptides, and cholesterol- lowering activity.

The recent study from Korea focused on demonstrating the probiotic properties of a strain of Lactobacillus helveticus, KII13, which was obtained from a traditional fermented cow’s milk from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Biochemical and microbiological tests were performed and showed that this strain would tolerate the conditions found in the human gut, that it would adhere well to the cells of the intestine, and that it exhibited some antimicrobial activity against various intestinal disease-causing bacteria. Similar to other strains of lactobacillus, its fermentation of milk produced bioactive proteins identified with antihypertensive properties. For this mouse study, Lactobacillus helveticus KII13 was selected over other Lactobacillus strains as it performed better than other strains in preliminary laboratory tests of cholesterol lowering.

For the study, three-week old male mice were fed a high cholesterol diet for 4 weeks to induce hypercholesterolemia. The mice were then divided into four groups of 7-8 mice per group.   For the next 7 weeks, one group (NCD) received a normal control diet without Lactobacilli. The second control group (HCD) received no lactobacilli but continued the high cholesterol diet. The third group received the high cholesterol diet with supplemental Lactobacillus Helveticas KII13 (HCD-KII13). The fourth group received the high cholesterol diet supplemented with another species of dairy Lactobacillus, Lactobacillus acidophilus ATCC 4312.

After the 7 weeks, the serum total cholesterol was decreased by 8.6 % (p<0.05) in the KII13 group and 7.78 % (p<0.05) in the L. acidophilus group as compared to the HCD group without Lactobacillus. Low-density lipoprotein levels were significantly reduced 13% (p<0.05) in the KII13 group and 11% (p<0.05) in the L. acidophilus group as compared to the HCD group.

The study concluded that Lactobacillus helveticus strain KII13 is a promising probiotic strain with both antihypertensive and cholesterol lowering activity in mouse models.

Source: Damodharan, Karthiyaini, Sasikumar Arunachalam Palaniyandi, Seung Hwan Yang, and Joo-Won Suh. “Functional probiotic characterization and in vivo cholesterol-lowering activity of Lactobacillus helveticus isolated from fermented cow milk.” Journal of microbiology and biotechnology 26, no. 10 (2016): 1675-1686.

© 2016 The Korean Society for Microbiology and Biotechnology

Posted January 18, 2018.

Marcia Egles, MD, graduated from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in 1986.  She completed her residency in Internal Medicine at St. Louis University Hospital.  Dr. Egles is certified in Internal Medicine and is a member of the American College of Physicians.  She resides in Avon, IN with her husband and two sons.

References:

  1. Damodharan K, Palaniyandi SA, Yang SH, Suh J-W. Functional probiotic characterization and in vivo cholesterol-lowering activity of Lactobacillus helveticus isolated from fermented cow milk. Journal of microbiology and biotechnology. 2016;26(10):1675-1686.
  2. Ahire JJ, Bhat AA, Thakare JM, et al. Cholesterol assimilation and biotransformation by Lactobacillus helveticus. Biotechnology letters. 2012;34(1):103-107.
  3. Taverniti V, Guglielmetti S. Health-promoting properties of Lactobacillus helveticus. Frontiers in microbiology. 2012;3.
  4. Yamamoto N, Akino A, Takano T. Antihypertensive effect of the peptides derived from casein by an extracellular proteinase from Lactobacillus helveticus CP790. Journal of Dairy Science. 1994;77(4):917-922.