Efficacy of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 against Giardia duodenalis trophozoites: an experimental study

Abstract

Giardia duodenalis, formerly known as Giardia lamblia, is an important zoonotic protozoan parasite. It mainly infects the intestines of humans, dogs, cats and domestic animals, causing diarrhea, abdominal pain, indigestion and weight loss. At present, all the clinical drugs for the treatment of Giardia have problems such as side effects and drug resistance to varying degrees, and the development of new drugs for the treatment of Giardia is still a hot issue. There is growing interest in using probiotics as an anti-intestinal parasite strategy. The present study aimed to assess the effect of supernatants of Bifidobacterium Animalis Subsp. lactis BB-12 on giardia the growth of giardia trophozoites. In this study, the Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 were cultured in BBL liquid medium, and the effects of the supernatants on the growth and adhesion of trophozoites of Giardia were observed. The results showed that the growth of Giardia flagellate was significantly inhibited by the supernatant. The influence of the supernatant on the morphology of the trophozoites was observed by microscope, and it was found that the surface of the trophozoites was uneven, the shape was atrophied, the surface cell membrane was broken to some extent, and the contents were spilt. In summary, the results of this study suggest that the fresh-cultured supernatants of the probiotic Bifidobacterium Animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 have anti-Giardia effects.