Biofilm Forming Lactobacillus: New Challenges for the Development of Probiotics.

Probiotics are live bacteria, generally administered in food, conferring beneficial effects to the host because they help to prevent or treat diseases, the majority of which are gastrointestinal. Numerous investigations have verified the beneficial effect of probiotic strains in biofilm form, including increased resistance to temperature, gastric pH and mechanical forces to that of their planktonic counterparts. In addition, the development of new encapsulation technologies, which have exploited the properties of biofilms in the creation of double coated capsules, has given origin to fourth generation probiotics.

Biofilm and Helicobacter pylori: from environment to human host.

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a Gram negative pathogen that selectively colonizes the human gastric epithelium. Over 50% of the world population is infected with H.