September 6, 2007

 

UK research suggests probiotics may reduce salmonella incidences

 

 

Research in the UK suggests probiotics could improve meat safety by reducing salmonella incidence in pigs.

 

The researchers from the UK's Veterinary Laboratories Agency in Weybridge, Surrey,reported their findings at a meeting of Society for General Microbiology in Edinburgh, UK.

 

Probiotics naturally occur in the gut of humans and other animals and act to boost immunity and help prevent bad bacteria from causing illnesses.

 

Currently, probiotics is added to food products such as milk.

 

Probiotics cannot be ingested in an unprotected state as it would not survive the digestive process. However scientists are formulating it such that it would be able to reach the gut when swallowed so it could reinforce the existing probiotics in the gut.

 

If probiotics could be proven to reduce salmonella incidences, there could be a widespread interest springing from the animal breeding industry as many producers are eager to improve food safety.

 

The EU ban on antibiotics further underlined this need.

 

Using space modelling technology, the researchers were able to simulate conditions inside a pig's gut and tested the viability of introducing more probiotics to a pig's digestive system through a computer system. 

 

Despite the findings, researchers conceded that it has not been established exactly how probiotics work to reduce pathogens.

 

Still, they hope the model would prove to be a useful step in solving the mystery.

 

The global retail market for probiotic dietary supplements for humans was estimated at just over US$1 billion in 2005, growing 46.9 percent between 2002 and 2005. Growth of 32.6 percent is predicted through 2010, according to Euromonitor International.