Discovering Vaginal Lactobacilli: Protectors Against Pathogens

Scientists in Italy collected 27 different types of lactobacilli from the vaginas of healthy women. They wanted to find out if these bacteria could be used as probiotics to fight off bad bacteria. The results were promising! All the lactobacilli strains could stop at least three types of harmful bacteria from growing. Most of them were especially good at stopping Enterobacter cloacae and two types of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The scientists found that the lactobacilli produced chemicals, like lactic acid, that helped them fight off the bad bacteria.

The lactobacilli also had different levels of stickiness, but all of them could stick to both colonic epithelial cells (HT-29) and vaginal cells (VK2/E6E7) pretty well. Some strains could even push away or block the bad bacteria from sticking to these cells. The ability to do this depended on both the type of bad bacteria and the specific lactobacilli strain. This study shows that lactobacilli from the vagina can protect against harmful bacteria. It also suggests that these bacteria could be used to make supplements to keep the genitourinary tract healthy.

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