PROSAFE: Biosafety evaluation of probiotic lactic acid bacteria used for human consumption

• Research unit: EU RFP
• Project number: 03.0118

Key words (English)

Agriculture; Economic Aspects; Food; Industrial Manufacture; Life Sciences; Medicine; Health; Safety

Alternative project number (English)

EU project number: QLK1-CT-2001-01273

Research programs (English)

EU-programme: 5. Frame Research Programme - 1.1.1 Food, nutrition and health

Short description (English)

See abstract

Further information (English)

Full name of research-institution/enterprise:
Université de Lausanne
Département de microbiologie fondamentale DMF
Bâtiment Biophore

Abstract (English)

Probiotic bacteria, mainly lactic acid bacteria (LAB) (e.g. lactobacilli, iactococci, enterococci, and bifidobacteria) have been considered safe for human consumption. However, recent reports of clinical infection, the spread of antibiotic resistance genes, and development of new and/or modified probiotic LAB strains, have caused concern of safety. This project aims to assess the bio-safe of LAB. Isolates from healthy humans and immuno-compromised patients, commercially available and new probiotic LAB will be studied.

After poly-phasic taxonomic identification, their bio-safety will be assessed by:
i) the detection of antibiotic resistance and horizontal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes;
ii) the detection of known and new virulence properties;
iii) evaluation of immunological adverse effects of LAB;
iv) the survival, colonisation, and genetic stability of probiotic LAB in the human gut. The project will result in recommendations for bio-safe and bio-safety testing ofLAB, which will be presented and discussed at a final conference.

References in databases (English)

Swiss Database: Euro-DB of the
State Secretariat for Education and Research
Hallwylstrasse 4
CH-3003 Berne, Switzerland
Tel. [phone]
Swiss Project-Number: 03.0118