Modulation of intestinal epithelial defense responses by probiotic bacteria

Probiotics are live microorganisms, which when administered in food confer numerous health benefits. In previous studies about beneficial effects of probiotic bacteria to health, particularly in the fields of intestinal mucosa defense responses, specific probiotics, in a strain-dependent manner, show certain degree of potential to reinforce the integrity of intestinal epithelium and/or regulate some immune components. The mechanism of probiotic action is an area of interest. Among all possible routes of modulation by probiotics of intestinal epithelial cell-mediated defense responses, modulations of intestinal barrier function, innate, and adaptive mucosal immune responses, as well as signaling pathways are considered to play important role in the intestinal defense responses against pathogenic bacteria. This review summarizes the beneficial effects of probiotic bacteria to intestinal health together with the mechanisms affected by probiotic bacteria: barrier function, innate, and adaptive defense responses such as secretion of mucins, defensins, trefoil factors, immunoglobulin A (IgA), Toll-like receptors (TLRs), cytokines, gut associated lymphoid tissues, and signaling pathways.