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Antibiotics
The difference between a
probiotic and an antibiotic is clear in
dictionary terms, but in early experiments, the
two concepts sometimes seem more alike than
different. The history of antibiotics includes
many accounts of odd accidents, where a reaction
between bacteria and mold eventually generated
new medical applications. Alexander Fleming
discovered penicillin by accident in 1928.
Penicillin is actually a mold or fungus which
fights particular infections that are
bacteria-based. In 1941, Howard Florey and Ernst
Chain further developed the Fleming discovery
into a form that became known as the new wonder
drug.
Penicillin and many other antibiotics work by
inhibiting the wall-building process in bacteria
cells, thereby weakening the harmful bacteria
that cause infections. Penicillin is
particularly effective in the treatment of strep
throat, syphilis, and pneumonia, but not all
bacterial infections are treatable by the use of
Penicillin. Probiotics work by reducing the
comfort factors that create a harbor for harmful
bacteria, such as pH factors within the lower
digestive system. However, even strong promoters
of probiotic treatments such as Dr. Anil Minocha
note that "No two probiotics are exactly alike;
we should not expect reproducible results from
studies that employ different species or
strains, variable formulations, and diverse
dosing schedules."
Streptomycin is an antibiotic that effectively
fights the bacteria which causes Tuberculosis.
Developed in 1943 by the American scientist
Selman Waksman, it was originally derived from
soil bacteria. Some bacterial infections have
been found to be resistant to Penicillin, which
has led to a new group of drugs being developed,
known as Tetracyclines. Aureomycin, discovered
in the 1940's, was the first Tetracycline.
Another type of antibiotic is the class known as
Cephalosporins, which were originally derived
from a bacteria living in a drainage pipe in
Italy. Given a choice between soil-derived and
"drainage pipe" bacteria versus yogurt, most
people would prefer the probiotic approach
offered by fermented milk products. However,
wide-spectrum antibiotics play an important role
in reducing illnesses at many stages in our life
cycle, from infant diseases to geriatric
problems.
For patients who are allergic to Penicillin, an
antibiotic called Erythromycin is often used.
This medicine was originally made from soil
bacteria found in the Phillipines, but now is
synthetically produced in the laboratory.
Bacitracin is an antibiotic derived from
bacteria, and is a common ingredient in
first-aid creams and ointments that are applied
directly to superficial cuts and minor wounds.
Many antibiotic agents are mined from fermented
bacterial reactions in a laboratory, which is
also the source of the probiotic-enhancing
compounds known as "prebiotics."
What characteristics are common to all
antibiotics? They tend to wipe out a large
number of the human body's helpful bacteria as
collateral damage, while attacking the infection
that is the main object of their task. Many
people report diarrhea and stomach upset as a
result of taking antibiotics. An overpopulation
of Candida, or a yeast infection, is also a
common side effect of the collateral damage
inflicted by antibiotics.
In contrast, probiotics represent a more gentle
and proactive approach. The presence of helpful
bacteria species such as Bulgaricus, B Breve, B
Longum, and Acidophilus in the intestines and
colon has been linked with a wide variety of
health benefits. One important function of
probiotic-rich foods and probiotic supplements
may be to help patients recover from the damage
inflicted by wide-spectrum antibiotics such as
Erythromycin.
In a 2009 study reported by "Nutrition in
Clinical Practice," Rohde, Bartolini, and Jones
noted that the harmful bacteria Clostridium
Difficile or C Difficile tends to run rampant
after broad-spectrum antibiotic treatment.
Whereas a normal, healthy person would have
microfloral controls in place to avoid the
overpopulation of C Difficile, a weakened immune
response can allow it to attack the intestinal
mucosa. This exploitation of the weakened gut
microflora after antibiotic treatment has the
potential to cause a variety of symptoms ranging
from mild diarrhea to severe life-threatening
conditions. Once established, a C Difficile
imbalance can lead to infection, sometimes
increasing mortality rates by 10%–30%. Severe
diarrhea can block the absorption of nutrients,
which is especially disastrous in underweight
children and frail elderly patients. Without the
proper absorption of nutrients, most patients
are slower to recover from the initial infection
that necessitated the first round of
antibiotics. Secondary infections make for
additional difficulties in recovery.
The Rohde and Bartolini study recommended
probiotic supplementation as a preventative
measure to boost the patients' indigenous
populations of helpful bacteria, thereby
preventing and treating antibiotic-associated
diarrhea. Their study concluded that specific
probiotics may change the environment at the
point of interchange, which is called the
intestinal mucosa. Probiotics appear to
antagonize various pathogens by producing
antimicrobial compounds and chemicals. The
helpful bacteria in probiotics thereby reduce
the rate of recurrence and lower the number of
infections caused by C difficile, according to
Rohde and Bartolini.
With regard to milder infections and pathogens
other than C Difficile, the same principles of
proactive protection apply to a variety of
situations. Dr. Anil Minocha recommends
probiotics to reduce allergies, treat urinary
tract infections, reduce the occurrence of
colitis, and to address the underlying causes of
irritable bowel disorder or IBD. He studied
growth factors in malnourished children and
reported that the uptake of nutrients appears to
become more efficient when children are
ingesting probiotic-enhanced food and beverages.
A recent 2009 study at the University of Toronto
identified mechanisms through which probiotics
appear to benefit the immune system. This
Canadian study found that some probiotics
enhance the mucous barrier of the intestines and
colon by increasing the production of innate
immune molecules. Other probiotics create
beneficial effects by promoting the secretion of
immune responses such as secretory
immunoglobulin A, regulatory T cells, and
interleukin-10.
In this Canadian study, some probiotics were
observed to activate receptors in the enteric
nervous system, which could indicate a future
field of study in the use of microbiotica for
certain types of gastrointestinal pain relief.
This study revealed enough new discoveries to
generate dozens of fresh hypotheses in the field
of gastroenterology, microflora, and immune
system fortification. The field of microbiology
is currently exploding with similar news,
indicating a promising potential for the future
use of probiotics in medicine.
With the combination of new genome-mapping
technology in the laboratory to document
cutting-edge bacterial strains, and
less-invasive endoscopic procedures to directly
observe the gastrointestinal tract, applications
for probiotic use appear to be on the verge of
acquiring "critical mass." With the next
generation of discoveries regarding probiotics,
the dividing line will soon be non-existent
between probiotic treatment as a theory versus
accepted therapy. Recent discoveries in the
field of microflora remind us that medicine may
be at a turning point similar to the one we
witnessed in 1945 with the advent of
antibiotics. Our next wonder drug is quite
likely to be an application of probiotics in the
field of gastroenterology, with wide-ranging
impacts on the understanding of the human immune
system.
SOURCES:
"The Details Behind Digestion." Kim Schoenhals.
EndoNurse Web Site: The Authority for Endoscopic
Nursing.
06/01/2003.
"Probiotics for Preventive Health." Anil Minocha,
MD, Louisiana State University Health Sciences
Center and VA Medical Center, Shreveport,
Louisiana. Nutrition in Clinical Practice, Vol.
24, No. 2, 227-241 (2009).
"The Use of Probiotics in the Prevention and
Treatment of Antibiotic-Associated Diarrhea With
Special Interest in Clostridium difficile–Associated
Diarrhea." Cynthia L. Rohde, Vickie Bartolini,
and Nicole Jones. Nutrition in Clinical
Practice, Feb 2009; vol. 24: pp. 33 - 40.
"Unraveling Mechanisms of Action of Probiotics."
Philip M. Sherman, Juan C. Ossa, and Kathlene
Johnson-Henry. The Research Institute, Hospital
for Sick Children, University of Toronto,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Nutrition in Clinical
Practice, Feb 2009; vol. 24, No. 1: pp. 10 - 14.
************************************
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