The widely used probiotic bacteria belong to the genera Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium and have in most cases been isolated from the human gastrointestinal tract. However, other "less conventional" bacteria, from allochthonous or extremophilic origin, sharing similar structural or functional features, may also confer specific health benefits to a host. Firstly, we explored the in vitro immuno-modulatory or immune-stimulatory activities of 25 wine lactic acid bacteria belonging to Oenococcus oeni and Pediococcus parvulus. While cytokines released by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) stimulated by P. parvulus strains, showed little variation, O. oeni strains induced strain-specific cytokine patterns. Some O. oeni strains were then further analyzed under various conditions for growth, dose and culture medium. In a second phase, we evaluated the oral tolerance and safety of two strains of O. oeni in mice fed a high dose of bacteria for a week. Finally, evidence was gathered on the in vivo anti-inflammatory potential of a selected O. oeni strain using an experimental 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced colitis mouse model. Although results did not match the anti-inflammatory levels obtained with certain conventional probiotics, strain IOEB 9115 significantly lowered colonic injury and alleviated colitis symptoms. The 'natural' tolerance towards acid, ethanol, and phenolic compounds of O. oeni strains combined with a measureable immunomodulatory potential, suggest a possible use of selected strains isolated from wine as live probiotics.
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