The Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology has received a grant from the European Union for the project “New strategies for probiotic supplementation in the prevention and treatment of asthma”.

In recent years, significant progress has been made in understanding the role of microorganisms that inhabit our bodies (also called the microbiome). As a result, there has been a rapid increase in interest in probiotics, which are promoted as “beneficial” bacteria that positively affect various body functions. However, despite marketing claims about the health-promoting properties of probiotics, scientific research shows their low effectiveness in the medical context. There are two key reasons that explain the ineffectiveness of probiotics. The first is the selection of inappropriate bacterial strains, and the second is their lack of effective colonization of the digestive system, which is the main area of microbiome colonization. As part of this research project, we propose new strategies to solve both of these problems.The aim is to investigate the preventive and therapeutic potential of new bacterial strains in the context of asthma and to develop a method to increase the effectiveness of bacterial colonization by opsonizing them with an antibody discovered by us, supporting the development of specific bacterial strains. The approach presented above distinguishes us from existing market solutions, as well as those proposed in patent document databases. Firstly, we propose the use of bacterial strains outside the Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium families, which dominate the probiotic market. Secondly, we are the first in the world to propose a method to increase the effectiveness of bacterial colonization using a monoclonal antibody. These solutions, based on our innovative and original achievements, pave the way for the commercialization of products that will not only be unique on the market, but above all more effective.
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