Oral intake of heat-killed Lactobacillus plantarum L-137 decreases the incidence of upper respiratory tract infection in healthy subjects with high levels of psychological stress
Open accessAbstract
The immunomodulatory effects of live or non-viable lactic acid bacteria have been extensively investigated. We reported that oral intake of heat-killed Lactobacillus plantarum L-137 (HK L-137) augmented innate and acquired immunity in mice and human subjects. To examine the effects of HK L-137 intake on upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) symptoms and immune functions in human subjects, a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel study was conducted in subjects with high psychological stress levels. A total of seventy-eight healthy subjects (thirty-three men and forty-five women; mean age 50·6 years) with scores of >41 on eighteen-item subscales of psychological distress in the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire were randomly assigned to receive a tablet containing HK L-137 (10 mg) or a placebo tablet daily for 12 weeks. The URTI symptoms were rated once daily on the validated twenty-one-item Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Symptom Survey-21. Immune functions, such as concanavalin A-induced proliferation and percentages of interferon (IFN)-γ- and IL-4-producing CD4 T cells of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), and serum IFN-β concentrations were measured every 4 weeks. URTI incidence was significantly lower in the HK L-137 group than in the control group. URTI incidence, duration and severity, and duration of medication showed significant negative correlations with duration of HK L-137 intake. The percentage change from baseline of concanavalin A-induced proliferation of PBMC was significantly greater in the HK L-137 group than in the control group. These findings suggest that daily HK L-137 intake can decrease URTI incidence in healthy subjects, possibly through augmentation of immune functions.
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In healthy subjects with high self-reported psychological stress, heat-killed L. plantarum L-137 significantly lowered incidence of URTI after 12 weeks compared to control.
“For example, in healthy subjects with high levels of self-reported psychological stress, supplementation with heat-killed L. plantarum L-137 significantly lowered incidence of URTI after 12 weeks compared to the control group [269].”
From International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: Probiotics (2019) · cites this paper as [269]
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International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: Probiotics
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Self-citation
- Authors
- Hirose, Y., Yamamoto, Y., Yoshikai, Y., & Murosaki, S.
- Affiliations
- House Wellness Foods Corporation (Japan) (JP)
- Kyushu University (JP)
- Corresponding author
- Hirose, Yoshitaka
- Venue
- Journal of Nutritional Science
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 2013
- Volume
- 2
- Pages
- e39-e39
- ISSN
- 2048-6790 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC4153334
- OpenAlex
- W2099299955
- Cited by
- 59
- References
- 52
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 8 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 2
- FWCI
- 1.49
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal of Nutritional Science (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- University of Cambridge
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Probiotics and Fermented Foods
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Immunology › Immune responses and vaccinations
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Microbiology › Reproductive tract infections research
- Keywords
- upper respiratory tract infection, psychological stress, immunomodulation, lactic acid bacteria, interferon-gamma, IL-4, interferon-beta, CD4+ T cells, probiotic supplementation
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