Screening of novel probiotics with intestinal peristalsis-promoting potential based on in vitro and in vivo investigations

Constipation is a widespread gastrointestinal issue. This work aimed to investigate anti-constipation capacities of 9 novel strains of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium using in vitro experiments for initial exploration and then further confirmed through in vivo models including both zebrafish and mice. The in vitro experimental results revealed that L. plantarum T34 and L. paracasei YJ10 could survive under the simulated gastrointestinal tract conditions as standard strain L. rhamnosus (LGG) did. L. paracasei YJ10 and L. casei Lc showed the highest 22 h's aggregation rate. L. rhamnosus W1 showed the highest coaggregation rate with E. coli and with S. aureus. T34 had the largest inhibition zones against S. typhimurium and L. Monocytogenes. The highest adhesion rates with HT-29 cells were L. casei Lc, LGG and W1. Principal component analysis (PCA) and Fuzzy synthetic evaluation (FSE) were performed to evaluate the in vitro probiotic potential of the 9 strains comprehensively. The order of scores on in vitro probiotic property from high to low was as follows: T34, W1, YJ10, Lc, LGG, SLT, SS, Lb, YN4 and LQSQ. The subsequent in vivo experiment of zebrafish further confirmed T34, W1 and YJ10 have better anti-constipation ability compared to other strains. Furthermore, T34 relieve loperamide-induced constipation by promoting gut transit in the mice model. In conclusion, T34 was demonstrated to prevent constipation and may be suggested for use in food and pharmaceutical goods.