Acid- and Heat-Resistant Probiotic Formulation With Prebiotics
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing probiotic formulations are sensitive to the acidic environment of the stomach and bile acid in the small intestine, leading to significant loss of beneficial bacteria and limited effectiveness in reversing intestinal dysbiosis and treating intestinal inflammatory bowel syndrome.
Innovation Solution
A formulation comprising acid and heat-resistant probiotics, such as Saccharomyces boulardii and Bacillus coagulans, combined with prebiotic substrates like apple pectin, fiber, and inulin, which survive the stomach and intestinal bile acid, allowing effective fermentation and colonization in the lower colon.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional probiotics are used in formulation, then they provide beneficial bacterial strains, but they are destroyed by stomach acid and bile acid in the small intestine, leading to low effectiveness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physiological state parameter of the probiotic bacteria by selecting strains that are naturally resistant to acidic and bile environments. Specifically, it uses acid-resistant strains (Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus salivarius) and bile-resistant strains (Bifidobacterium animalis, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium longum, Lactobacillus reuteri) that can survive passage through the stomach and small intestine to reach the colon where they exert their beneficial effects.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces prebiotic substrates (inulin, fructo-oligosaccharides, galacto-oligosaccharides, transgalacto-oligosaccharides, resistant starch) as intermediary compounds that protect and nourish the probiotic bacteria during their passage through the gastrointestinal tract. These prebiotics serve as food sources that enhance bacterial survival and promote their colonization in the colon, thereby mediating the interaction between probiotics and the harsh gastrointestinal environment.
2Reliability
If probiotics are administered without prebiotics, then they may be destroyed in the digestive tract, but adding prebiotics provides substrate for fermentation and enhances probiotic effectiveness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges probiotics and prebiotics into a single synergistic formulation, creating a combined product that delivers both beneficial bacteria and their food source simultaneously. This combination ensures that the prebiotic substrates are available to support probiotic survival and growth during passage through the gastrointestinal tract and during colonization in the colon, thereby enhancing the overall effectiveness of the probiotic intervention.
3Ease of manufacture
If acid-sensitive probiotics are used, then they are easy to produce and handle, but they lose most of their population during passage through the stomach and small intestine
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the environmental resistance parameter of the probiotic formulation by selecting bacterial strains with inherently higher acid and bile resistance. The chosen strains (Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus salivarius, Bifidobacterium animalis, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium longum, Lactobacillus reuteri) possess physiological adaptations that allow them to withstand the harsh conditions of the stomach and small intestine, thereby maintaining viable populations throughout digestive passage.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The formulation effectively restores the balance of beneficial bacteria, reduces the population of harmful bacteria, and treats intestinal inflammatory bowel syndrome by producing short-chain fatty acids like butyric acid, thereby addressing intestinal dysbiosis and its associated health issues.
Implementation Method 1
the beneficial bacteria ferments the prebiotic substrate
Data Source
AI summary
A probiotic formulation comprises acid and heat resistant probiotics, like Saccharomyces boulardii and Bacillus coagulans.