Bacillus coagulans probiotic for gut microbiota balance

Bacillus Coagulans Probiotic is a probiotic dietary supplement containing at least 2 billion Bacillus coagulans microorganisms per capsule.

With characteristics of both lactobacillus and bacillus, this allochtonous bacteria offers robust resistance to the harshest environmental conditions (including the acidity of gastric secretions), ensuring it reaches the gut completely intact. It thus represents a major hope in research, particularly in terms of combatting intestinal function disorders.

This supplement is thus part of our Digestion and oro-gastrointestinal health category.

Bacillus coagulans: a remarkable probiotic

First isolated in 1932, Bacillus coagulans is a rod-shaped, Gram positive bacterium measuring on average 0.9 μm x 4.0 μm, able to survive in both aerobic and anaerobic (oxygen-deprived) conditions. Though not naturally present in gut flora, it is able to colonise there via the consumption of fruit, vegetables and soil products (1).

Though now classed as a Bacillus, its taxonomy has long been the subject of debate. It used to be more commonly known as Lactobacillus sporogenes, considered a lactobacillus because of its ability to produce lactic acid. But due to the formation of spores in its cytoplasm, absent in lactobacilli and bifidobacteria, scientists finally settled on its classification as a bacillus.

Protected by natural encapsulation, B. coagulans is not impaired by high temperatures, drying, osmolarity or ambient pH changes, enabling it tobypass hydrochloric acid in the stomach, pepsin, pancreatin, ions, digestive enzymes, bile and mucin. An estimated 85% of the spores therefore reach the gut (2), where they are able to ‘germinate’ and proliferate in the intestinal tract as rapidly as 4-6 hours after oral administration.

According to the latest research findings, spore-forming probiotics such as Bacillus coagulans may beneficially affect host health in a number of ways: by modulating composition of the gut microbiota, maintaining immune homeostasis, synthesising digestive enzymes and producing antimicrobial bacteriocins.

What are the benefits offered by Bacillus Coagulans Probiotic?

• Significant support for irritable bowel syndrome. Several studies have analysed the effects of coagulans in alleviating symptoms of IBS. One randomised, double-blind study reported improved tolerance to abdominal pain, smoother intestinal transit and a reduction in associated anxiety (3).
• Support during antibiotic treatment. Repeated or prolonged use of antibiotics tends to significantly destabilise the composition of microbial flora by disrupting the balance between beneficial and pathogenic bacteria. Referred to as ‘dysbiosis’, this often manifests in changes in intestinal transit. One study of subjects suffering from acute diarrhoea and abdominal discomfort showed a marked improvement in quality of life following supplementation with coagulans (LBSC strain) (4).
• A boost for slow transit, or Lazy Bowel Syndrome. In a study of people suffering from functional constipation, coagulans Unique IS-2 showed significant efficacy. At the end of the trial, 98% of subjects receiving the probiotic had normal stools, compared with 74% in the placebo group. There was also a reduction in complaints affecting incomplete evacuation, painful defecation and abdominal spasms (5).
• A potential adjunct treatment for gynaecological infections. Supplementation with coagulans was offered to 40 women diagnosed with bacterial vaginosis, often resistant to conventional antimicrobial treatment, alongside antibiotics. Positive responses to this treatment were almost double those of a control group (6).
• Modulation of immune processes. Coagulans appears to affect the immune system in various ways. Its spores release bactericides (including coagulin and lactosporin), lactic acid and short-chain fatty acids such as butyric acid, that can block the path of opportunistic microorganisms (7). A number of studies also suggest it mediates the response of T lymphocytes to certain viral infections of the respiratory tract and inhibits the release of TNF-α, serum amyloid A and fibrinogen in arthritic rats (8-9).
• Potential applications for oral health. Coagulans may combat the cariogenic (tooth decay-promoting) effects of biofilm microbes. It creates an acid, anaerobic environment which is unfavourable to pathogenic strains such as Streptococcus mutans, but favourable to good lactic bacteria (10).

Bacillus coagulans and Bacillus subtilis: how do they differ?

Bacillus coagulans and Bacillus subtilis are part of the same Bacillaceae family and are both spore-forming. They differ mainly in their endospore location (terminal in B. coagulans, sub-terminal in B. subtilis).

These two probiotics work in a complementary way to support intestinal balance and can be happily combined to enhance microbiotic diversity. When administered together in rat studies, a rise in beneficial lactic bacteria and a reduction in harmful (coliform) bacteria were observed (11).