Regular administration of the bacterium can alleviate the effects of chronic malnutrition
Research by an international team of scientists has the potential to help malnourished children. They found that a specific bacterial strain, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum WJL, can improve postnatal growth in malnourished animals and promote the production and activity of growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and insulin when given daily. This could work similarly in children. The research was carried out by scientists from the Institute of Microbiology of the CAS in collaboration with French and German researchers and colleagues from the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the CAS, and their work has been published in the journal Science.
Chronic undernutrition after weaning leads to stunting, which is alleviated by LpWJL. LpWJL peptidoglycans engage NOD2 in the intestinal epithelium, which increases the proliferation of small intestinal stem cells, type I interferon signaling, IGF-1 production, and postnatal growth despite undernutrition.
Source: Czech Academy of Sciences - the official press release in Czech HERE
Publication: Schwarzer M., Gautam U. K., Makki K., Lambert A., Brabec T., Joly A., Šrůtková D., Poinsot P., Novotná T., Geoffroy S., Courtin P., Petr Hermanová P., Matos R. C., Landry J.J.M., Gérard C., Bulteau A.-L., Hudcovic T., Kozáková H., Filipp D., Chapot-Chartier M.-P., Šinkora M., Peretti N., Gomperts Boneca I., Chamaillard M., Vidal H., De Vadder F., Leulier F.: Microbe-mediated intestinal NOD2 stimulation improves linear growth of undernourished infant mice. Science, 24 února 2023. DOI: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ade9767