A research group led by Aika Kosuga, Assistant Professor, Kazuo Kunizawa, and Associate Professor Akihiro Mouri of the Graduate School of Health Sciences, Fujita Medical University, found that heat-sterilized bifidobacteria suppress inflammation in the brain and bring about an anti-stress effect. discovered.It seems that it can be applied to pharmaceuticals and a wide range of products because the effect is recognized after heat sterilization.
According to Fujita Medical University, when stress was applied to mice that had been given heat-sterilized bifidobacteria in advance, no behavioral abnormalities caused by stress were observed, and intestinal bacteria in feces were disturbed by stress. There was no.
Furthermore, focusing on the fact that intestinal bacteria are closely related to immune function, we investigated the situation in the brain and found that interleukin 1β, a bioactive protein that has a function of promoting inflammatory response and is increased by stress, is suppressed. I also found that it was done.Interleukin 1β is known as a risk factor for depression.The research group suspects that bifidobacteria can prevent the onset of depression by suppressing interleukin 1β in the brain.
Fermented foods such as yogurt containing live intestinal bacteria are widely used, but live bacteria must be carefully considered for storage temperature, etc., and the products that can be used are limited.On the other hand, heat-sterilized bacteria are easy to handle in terms of hygiene management, opening the way for application to a wide range of products.
