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Original article
Oral administration of the probiotic Lactobacillus fermentum VRI-003 and mucosal immunity in endurance athletes
  1. A J Cox1,2,
  2. D B Pyne1,3,
  3. P U Saunders1,
  4. P A Fricker3,4
  1. 1Department of Physiology, Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra, Australia
  2. 2School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, Australia
  3. 3Medical School, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
  4. 4Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra, Australia
  1. Correspondence to Dr D Pyne, Department of Physiology, Australian Institute of Sport, PO Box 176, Belconnen, ACT, 2616, Australia; david.pyne{at}ausport.gov.au

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the ability of a probiotic Lactobacillus fermentum VRI-003 (PCC) to enhance the mucosal immune system of elite athletes.

Design and setting A double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial was conducted over a 4-month period of winter training.

Participants 20 healthy elite male distance runners.

Interventions PCC was given at a daily dose of 1.26×1010 as a freeze-dried powder in gelatin capsules. Placebo capsules contained an inert excipient.

Main outcome measures Treadmill performance (monthly), mucosal and systemic immunity (monthly), training (daily) and illness (daily) were assessed. Serum cytokine levels, salivary IgA levels and incidence, duration and severity of respiratory tract infections were measured.

Results Subjects reported less than half the number of days of respiratory symptoms during PCC treatment (30 days) compared with placebo (72 days, p<0.001). Illness severity was also lower for episodes occurring during the PCC treatment (p = 0.06). There were no significant differences in the mean change in salivary IgA and IgA1 levels, or in interleukin (IL)4 and IL12 levels, between treatments. However, PCC treatment elicited a twofold (p = 0.07) greater change in whole-blood culture interferon gamma (IFNγ) compared with placebo. No substantial changes in running performance measures were seen over the study period.

Conclusions Prophylactic administration of PCC was associated with a substantial reduction in the number of days and severity of respiratory illness in a cohort of highly trained distance runners. Maintenance of IFNγ levels may be one mechanism underpinning the positive clinical outcomes.

https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2007.044628

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    Footnotes

    • Funding The study was funded by Probiomics Ltd (formerly VRI BioMedical Ltd) and by an AusIndustry R&D Start Grant awarded to VRI BioMedical. AJC was funded by VRI Biomedical Ltd as the clinical trials coordinator for this project.

    • Competing interests None.

    • Ethics approval By the Ethics Committee of the Australian Institute of Sport in accordance with the Code of Ethics of the World Medical Association (Declaration of Helsinki).