Anticancer Potential of Post-Fermentation Media and Cell Extracts of Probiotic Strains: An In Vitro Study.

Background: Lactic acid bacteria (LAB), many of which are probiotics, can produce health-promoting metabolites (postbiotics).

Purpose: To assess the mechanism of antiproliferative action of postbiotics, post-fermentation media (PFM) and cell extracts (CEs) of several strains of LAB were studied against colon (Caco-2), and cervix (HeLa) cancer cell lines, as well as normal intestine (IEC-6) cells, were used as a comparison.

Methods: Postbiotics of various LAB ( = 39) were screened for their antiproliferative activity. The effect of PFM and CEs on reactive oxygen species (ROS), mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), ATP production, phosphatidylserine (PS) externalisation, and apoptosis-related caspases 3/7 and 9 activation was assayed.

Results: PFM and CEs showed strong dose-dependent antiproliferative activity against Caco-2 cells, up to 77.8 ± 0.8% and 58.4 ± 1.6% for PFM and CEs, respectively. Stronger inhibitory activity against cancerous (Caco-2 and HeLa) cells than against normal (IEC-6) cells was observed. PFM were more inhibitory than CEs, and both generated oxidative stress in Caco-2 cells. PFM of 0991 and 0983 induced apoptosis in Caco-2 cells by the mitochondrial signalling pathway.

Conclusions: Anticancer activity of PFM and CEs of LAB, as well as the ability of apoptosis induction, is strain-specific.