UNDERSTANDING THE HEALTH IMPACT OF BIFIDOBACTERIUM MICROBIOTA ON LONGEVITY

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: TERMINATED
• Funding Source: EVANS-ALLEN
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 0225846
• Project No.: NCX-267-5-12-170-1
• Project Start Date: Oct 1, 2011
• Project End Date: Sep 30, 2014

Project Director
Ibrahim, S.

Recipient Organization
NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIV
1601 EAST MARKET STREET
GREENSBORO,NC 27411

Performing Department
Family and Consumer Sciences

Non Technical Summary
The growth of the elderly population is expected to accelerate rapidly. Increasing elderly population will subsequently increase the health care costs significantly in North Carolina and throughout the nation. Several studies have shown a decrease in bifidobacteria in the intestinal microbiota with aging. Factors such as decreased immunity, concomitant changes in nutrition, increased incidence of disease and corresponding use of medication with advancing age modify the composition of the microbial community in the gastrointestinal tract. Previous researches conducted by this group are also identified positive effect of probiotics on longevity. Currently, huge amount of medicinal treatments is prescribed for elderly including anti blood pressure, anti diabetic and arthritis prescription. There are several reports of side effects and indirect interaction of prescribed medicine on Elderly health. The side effects of prescriptions will also increase the treatment costs and negatively affect the elderly health in general. To address this issue, our group is proposing to investigate the impact of Bifidobacterium microbiota on longevity for elderly during their drug prescription using in-vitro and animal models by studying the exposure effect of commonly administered medical drugs of elderly on the death rate of Bifidobacterium microbiota. We also plan to demonstrate the effect of commonly administered medical drugs on phenotypic/genotypic characteristics of Bifidobacterium microbiota, and to study the interaction between commonly administered medical drugs and Bifidobacterium microbiota on the intestinal function (animal model). This project will improve the health of elderly and prevent consequent challenges due to frequent drug administration and will improve health condition for elderly and reduced the costs of treatments and health care consequently.

Animal Health Component

(N/A)

Research Effort Categories

Basic

(N/A)

Applied

(N/A)

Developmental

(N/A)

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
723	4010	1100	45%
723	3899	1060	45%
723	4010	3020	10%

Knowledge Area
723 - Hazards to Human Health and Safety;

Subject Of Investigation
4010 - Bacteria; 3899 - Other animals, general;

Field Of Science
1060 - Biology (whole systems); 3020 - Education; 1100 - Bacteriology;

Keywords

probiotics

elderly

health

medical treatment

bifidobacterium microbiota

human longevity

Goals / Objectives
It is anticipated that this proposed project will enable the PI to establish new research in the area of probiotics for human health in a one practical research model using in-vitro experiments, mathematical modeling and animal models. The research will address the following objective: Objective 1: Investigate exposure effect of commonly administered medical drugs of elderly persons over 65 years old on the death rate of Bifidobacterium microbiota. Objective 2: Demonstrate the effect of commonly administered medical drugs on phenotypic/genotypic characteristics of Bifidobacterium microbiota. Objective 3: Study the interaction between commonly administered medical drugs and Bifidobacterium microbiota on the intestinal function (animal model). Objective 4: Develop outreach program to educate consumers about the impact of Bifidobacterium microbiota on health and human longevity. Expected Outcomes - The gastrointestinal microbiota in human and animals are significantly impacted drug prescription including antibiotics. It is essential to understand the behavior and impact of the drugs on gastrointestinal microbiota specially probiotics as leading microorganisms in health for both human and animals. The project will enhance a new, innovative multidisciplinary research program studying the effect of probiotics on food science and agriculture that will have direct effect on animal health, food safety and quality, new food products and benefits to the society. Reducing the incidence and impact of disease in the elderly gastrointestinal system will reduce reliance on pharmaceuticals in treating the elderly, improve the intestinal environment for better nutritional uptake, and increase immunity reactions against harmful bacteria will be other outcomes (Brown, Shovic, Ibrahim, Holck, & Huang, 2005). The project will advance the understanding of the interaction processes between Bifidobacterium spp. and three common drug groups in elderly at in- vitro and in-vivo. Results of this project will enable us to develop protocols for efficient consumption of Bifidobacterium spp. in drug prescription condition. Understanding of the processes involved in the use of Bifidobacterium spp. for production of functional and supplemental foods. Develop educational program to address issues relate to health benefits of good bacteria on longevity is also another outcome. Overall, this project will enhance the performance of the research and educational programs at NCA&TSU in basic and applied food and nutritional science and further attract more students to the School of Agriculture. The proposed project will also help NCA&TSU engage in partnering with other research and teaching institutions as well as related industries. The results of this project could benefit elderly health in North Carolina specifically and the US in general. The functional compounds produced by probiotics will improve the overall health of the elderly.

Project Methods
Objective 1 - At least four strains of bifidobacteria will be tested. These strains have identified by several research papers as most common Bifidobacterium microbiota of elderly. Bifidobacterium strains that will be used in this project: Bifidobacterium adolescentis, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium longum and Bifidobacterium species Three common medical drugs used for elderly treatments are: a. Blood pressure medicines; captopril (Capoten) metoprolol (Lopressor, Toprol XL) b. Diabetis; Rosiglitazone (Avandia), Glipizide (Glucotrol) and Saxagliptin (Onglyza) c. Arthritis; Advil, Nuprin, Motrin (ibuprofen), Tylenol (Paracetamol) and Aleve (naproxen sodium). These drugs will be prepared based on the general prescription levels for elderly at our designated in-vitro models. Bacterial populations will be determined by plating onto MRS agar. Colonies will be counted after plating 48h at 37C to determine Bifidobacterium spp. population. Shape and morphological changes between treated and control bacterial samples will be monitored by helium ion microscopic method. Objective 2 - Different characteristics of Bifidobacterium against different treatments will be evaluated for viability, growth overtime (Optical density), adhesion and auto aggregation, enzyme activity, protein expression and artificial neural network for interaction between different drugs in the medium. The genotyopic characteristics will also be evaluated using RT-PCR. Proteins from bacterial cell wall membranes will be collected checked by SDS-PAGE. In order to determining the effects of the bacteria exposure to specific chemical compounds, the effects of interactions of different components will be determined. To assess log P% of Bifidobacterium spp., the experiment will be arranged in a full factorial design. We will use the Neural Network Toolbox. In this procedure Antibiotic, antidiabetics and antiblood pressures will be input layers and hidden layer will be created in the software and output layer will be log. Objective 3 - Two indicators will be evaluated using adult BALB/c mice to investigate the interaction between drugs and Bifidobacterium spp. These indicators are 1- The populating Bifidobacterium spp. in fecal samples, 2- Weight and physiological indicators of mice. Mice applications as a model for elderly treatment have been used in several studies. They are eight groups of treatments: 1- Control, 2- Bifidobacterium only, 3- Anti blood pressure, 4- Anti diabetic, 5- Arthritis, 6- Anti blood pressure + Bifidobacterium, 7- Anti diabetic + Bifidobacterium, 8- Arthritis + Bifidobacterium Fecal samples from each mouse and gram stain will be examined every day. Isolates will also be tested for the presence of fructose-6-phosphate phosphoketolase activity. Animal weights will be screened and evaluated during treatments. Physiological and physical indicators such as hair will be evaluated between treated and control animals. Objective 4 - In this objective, we plan to provide educational materials (handouts, brochures) and conduct one seminars/workshop to educate the consumers about the benefits of Bifidobacterium microbiota on health and human longevity.

Progress 10/01/11 to 09/30/14

Outputs
Target Audience: Target audience: There are three distinctive target audiences for this project -- academic community (students and scientists); local communities and consumers; and the food and dietary supplement industry. Effort: Researchers have completed several activities to inform the audience about our findings. They added one lecture to the food microbiology class to describe impact of medical drugs on probiotics. This is also includes a laboratory demonstrations (2).Several undergraduate and graduate students participated in this as practicum or special problem class (FCS 603 and FCS 637). Researchers conducted one workshop for the local community and one for high school students, in addition to scientific presentations at local regional and national conferences. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Overall, this project will enhance the performance of the research and educational programs at NCA&TSU in basic and applied food and nutritional science and further attract more students to the School of Agriculture. The project will also help NCA&TSU engage in partnering with other research and teaching institutions as well as related industries. The results of this project could benefit elderly citizen of North Carolina specifically and the US citizen by providing information about impact of common drugs on the natural microbiota in the gut. This project will also help citizen to understand the impact of probiotics on elderly health. The functional compounds produced by probiotics will improve the overall health of the elderly and this would reduce medical costs. In general the results from this project will be shared with the students, staff and faculty members at North Carolina A&T State University. In addition, this project would have a direct impact on the educational program in food science at North Carolina A&T State University. Finding of the project approaches will have a major impact to reduce health cost for North Carolina citizens, local community, health care community and health insurance industries that are considered as immediate stakeholders. This project will also help to promote and implement the concept of healthy food for healthy living among the citizens of North Carolina, potentially increasing longevity. This project has immediate impact on consumers and senior citizens. This project will provide a better understanding of how common medicine could change the beneficial micro flora in the human intestinal system. Research Apprenticeship Program, summer 2013 North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University Kendall A. Mack, Junior- KIPP Atlanta Collegiate. Impact of Medical Drugs on the Enzymatic Activity of Human Gut Natural Flora. PI: Dr Salam A. Ibrahim Jade Steele, Senior- Westmoore High School. Interaction between Bifidobacteria Strains and Medical Drugs. PI: Dr Salam A. Ibrahim Student Involvement Four graduate students involved directly in this project. One undergraduate student will also assist the laboratory work and support the PI and graduate students, needs. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Workshops and seminars: Ag Biotech Entrepreneurial Showcase, The NC Biotechnology Center,15 T W Alexander, Durham, NC 27703, Thursday, October 10, 2013. Biological Safety Workshop, U.S.Environmental Protection Agency, 109 T W Alexander Dr. Triangle, NC27711, Monday, March 4, 2013 Food health and probiotics workshop including five presentations covered current issues related to food science. Career and Technical Education Summer Conference 2013, Family and Consumer Sciences Education. Jul-2013. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Researchersplan to continue to work to complete the objectives 3 and 4. One MS student will start the PhD program this summer and plan to work on this project.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? In this project, wee proposed four different objectives to understand the effect of commonly administered medical drugs of elderly persons over 65 years old on the death rate of microbiota. Objective 1: Investigate exposure effect of commonly administered medical drugs of elderly persons over 65 years old on the death rate of Bifidobacterium microbiota. Objective 2: Demonstrate the effect of commonly administered medical drugs on phenotypic/genotypic characteristics of Bifidobacterium microbiota. Objective 3: Study the interaction between commonly administered medical drugs and Bifidobacterium microbiota on the intestinal function (animal model). Objective 4: Develop outreach program to educate consumers about the impact of Bifidobacterium microbiota on health and human longevity. To our knowledge, this is the first study that addresses application of probiotics on improvement of variety of common elderly medicinal treatments using animal model and in-vitro. It is anticipated that this project will enable to establish new research in the area of probiotics for human health as related to longevity. Progress on Objectives Objective 1: Completed Objective 2: Completed Objective 3 and 4 (will be completed during the academic year 2013-2014) NO completed due to laboratory shut down. A: Impact of exposure effect of commonly administered medical drugs of elderly persons over 65 years old on the death rate of microbiota.Researchers conducted several experiments related to the exposure bacterial strains to medical drugs and our results found that all tested drugs caused a reduction in the population.The average reduction was between 1-2 log CFU/g.Our results also demonstrated that this is strain depended and drug dependent. It is also depends on the concentrations and frequency of exposure to drugs. The drug level between 0.01 and 0.1% is required to show such reduction in bacterial population. When the same experiment was conducted under acidic condition (pH 2.5), similar to stomach pH value, the bacterial reduction was 2-4 Log CFU/g. This indicates that bacterial strains are more sensitive in acidic environment, similar to human gastrointestinal condition. B: Impact of exposure effect of commonly administered medical drugs of elderly persons over 65 years old on the death rate of microbiota. In these experiments, researchers have tested several durg for their impact on probiotics. Our results show that blood pressure medicine such as captopril cause significant bacterial growth reduction for Lactobcillus strains at 0.01%. Bth galactoside and glucoside activity were inhibited at this level. Acid production was reduced by 40-50% in the addition of Arthritis. Some of the Diabetis reduce the growth of Lactobacillus over time. Early this fall, we conducted few experiments to determine the survival of Bifidobacterium strains in the presence of commonly administered medical drugs. One tablet of each of the drug (Aleve, Aspirin, Glipizide, lesinopril, and Tylenol) was completely dissolved in 9ml of fresh MRS broth. Five different strains of Bifidobacterium sp. (B.breve, B.longum, B.infantis, B.adolesentis, and B.bifidium) were used for this study. Our result shows a reduction in bifidobacteria population by average of approximately 3.0 ±0.45 log CFU/ml. Our findings indicated that intake of medications has significant effects on the survival of bifidobacteria thereby affecting functionality of probiotics.

Publications

Progress 01/01/13 to 09/30/13

Outputs
Target Audience: Target audience: There are different types of target audiences for this project. Researchers grouped them into three groups: 1. Academic community (students and scientists) , 2. Local communities and consumers and 3. Food and dietary supplement industry. Effort: Researchers have completed several activities to inform the audience about our findings: Researchers added one lecture to the food microbiology class to describe impact of medical drugs on probiotics. This is also includes a laboratory demonstrations (2). Several undergraduate and graduate students participated in this as practicum or special problem class (FCS 603 and FCS 637). Researchers conducted one workshop for the local community and one for high school students. In addition, the work was presented in several scientific local regional and national conferences. Changes/Problems: The first two objectives of the project were completed successfully without any problems. The achieved results were very promising and will add great values to probiotic and human health literature. However, experimental work related to this projected was stopped due to shut down of our laboratory. Our laboratory was closed in Oct, 2013 which stopped the work and progress of this project. This unexpected close to our laboratory may affect our ability to meet with project completion deadlines. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Overall, this project enhanced the performance of the research and educational programs at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in basic and applied food and nutritional sciences, and could attract more students to the School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences. The project also helped N.C. A&T partner with other research and teaching institutions and related industries. The results from this project will be shared with the students, staff and faculty members at N.C A&T. In addition, this project will have a direct impact on the educational program in food science at N.C. A&T. The project gave the following high school students from the summer 2013 Research Apprenticeship Programthe opportunity to participate: Kendall A. Mack, Junior- KIPP Atlanta Collegiate. Impact of Medical Drugs on the Enzymatic Activity of Human Gut Natural Flora. PI: Dr Salam A. Ibrahim Jade Steele, Senior- Westmoore High School. Interaction between Bifidobacteria Strains and Medical Drugs. PI: Dr Salam A. Ibrahim Graduate and undergraduate students are involved in this project. Students are planning to attend to local, regional and national conferences to present their research findings. The undergraduate students are: Ms. Marcella Cheek Mr. Carlos Carter Mr. Ariostotle Nelson Ms. Angelica Duff The graduate students are: Ms. Mr. Temitayo O. Obanla, M.S. student Mr. Yousif Abdulsalam, Ph.D. student Ms. Amira A. Ayed, Ph.D. student Ms. Bernice D. Karlton-Senaye. Ph.D. student How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Workshops and seminars: Ag Biotech Entrepreneurial Showcase, The NC Biotechnology Center,15 T W Alexander, Durham, NC 27703, Thursday, October 10, 2013. Biological Safety Workshop, U.S.Environmental Protection Agency, 109 T W Alexander Dr. Triangle, NC27711, Monday, March 4, 2013 Food health and probiotics workshop including five presentations covered current issues related to food science. Career and Technical Education Summer Conference 2013, Family and Consumer Sciences Education. Jul-2013. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? We plan to continue to work on objectives 3 and 4. One MS student and one PhD student will be working on this project during this year, 2014. At least two manuscripts will be developed from the completed work and will be submitted to high quality scientific journal for possible publication. The work will be presented in different national and international conferences.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? In this project, we proposed the following objectives to understand the effect of commonly administered medical drugs used by elderly people over 65 years old on the death rate of beneficial microbiota. Objective 1: Investigate exposure effect of commonly administered medical drugs used by elderly persons over 65 years old on the death rate of Bifidobacterium microbiota. Objective 2: Demonstrate the effect of commonly administered medical drugs on the phenotypic/genotypic characteristics of Bifidobacterium microbiota. Objective 3: Study the interaction between commonly administered medical drugs and Bifidobacterium microbiota in the intestinal function (animal model). Objective 4: Develop outreach program to educate consumers about the impact of Bifidobacterium microbiota on health and human longevity. Objective 1: We conducted several experiments in which we exposed bacterial strains to medical drugs, and results indicated that all tested drugs caused a reduction in the bacterial population. Our results also demonstrated that the death of probiotic bacteria due to drug exposure is strain and drug dependent. It is also depends on the concentrations and frequency of exposure to drugs. Our results also indicate that bacterial strains are more sensitive in acidic environments that are similar to the human gastrointestinal tract. Objective 2: In these experiments, we tested several drugs for their impact on probiotics. Results indicated that a blood pressure medicine, Capoten, caused significant growth reduction in Lactobacillus strains at 0.01%; and that galactoside and glucoside activities were inhibited. Acid production was reduced by 40-50% due to the addition of arthritis drugs. Some of the diabetes drugs reduced the growth of Lactobacillus over time. We observed a reduction in bifidobacteria populations after exposing them to Aleve, Aspirin, Glipizide, Lesinopril, and Tylenol tablets dissolved in MRS broth solutions. Our findings indicated that medications have significant effects on the survival of bifidobacteria, thereby affecting functionality of probiotics. Objective 3 and 4 will be completed during the academic year 2013-2014. There was no progress due to a laboratory shut down. To our knowledge, this is the first study that addresses probiotics and common elderly medicinal treatments using animal model and in-vitro studies. It is anticipated that this project will enable us to establish new research in probiotics for human health as related to longevity. The results of this project could benefit the elderly providing information about the impact of common drugs on the natural beneficial microbiota in the gut. The functional compounds produced by probiotics could improve the overall health of elderly people and this would reduce their need for medical treatments and help medical treatment costs.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S. A., Gyawali, R., Shahbazi, A., Tahergorabi, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Impact of different metal ions on the enzymatic activity of Lactobacillus reuteri growing in a sweet potato base medium. North Carolina Branch of the American Society for Microbiology. 2013 Annual Meeting, October 26th, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S. A., Gyawali, R., Shahbazi, A., Tahergorabi, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Impact of sweet potato base on the growth and enzymatic activity of lactobacilli. North Carolina Branch of the American Society for Microbiology. 2013 Annual Meeting, October 26th, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Nelson, A. J., Gyawali, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Antimicrobial activity of Origanox" and sodium lactate against Escherichia coli O157:H7 in culture medium. 2nd Annual bridging the gap conference. Raleigh, NC, Oct 14-15, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Obanla, T. O, Gyawali, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Death Rate of Bifidobacteria in the Presence of Commonly Administered Medications. 2nd Annual bridging the gap conference. Raleigh, NC, Oct 14-15, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Ayad, A., Gyawali, R., Gad El-Rab, D. A., and Ibrahim, S. A. Decontamination of Escherichia coli O157:H7 from leafy green vegetables using ascorbic acid alone or in combination with acetic acid. 2nd Annual bridging the gap conference. Raleigh, NC, Oct 14-15, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S. A., Shahbazi, A., Worku, M., and Ibrahim, S. A. Enzymatic activities of Lactobacillus grown in a sweet potato base medium. 2nd Annual bridging the gap conference. Raleigh, NC, Oct 14-15, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Karlton-Senaye, B. D. Shahbazi, A., and Ibrahim, S. A. Impact of gums on the growth of probiotics. 2nd Annual bridging the gap conference. Raleigh, NC, Oct 14-15, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Rabin Gyawali, R. Aljaloud, S. A. Ibrahim, S. A. Survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 on inoculated palm dates stored at 24�C. 2nd Annual bridging the gap conference. Raleigh, NC, Oct 14-15, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Gyawali, R., Ibrahim, S. A., Park, Y.W., and Hayek, S. A., Viability of probiotics in goat milk yogurt supplemented with different gums during 4 weeks refrigerated storage. National Goat Conference. Sept 15-18, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S. A., Shahbazi, A., Awaisheh, S. S., Shah, N. P., and Ibrahim, S. A. Using sweet potatoes as a basic component to develop a medium for cultivation of lactobacilli. National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology. Sept 12, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Gyawali, R., Ayad, A., and Ibrahim, S. A. Antimicrobial activity of copper or ascorbic acid alone and in combination with organic acid to decontaminate Escherichia coli O157:H7 from fresh produce. National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology. Sept 12, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Karlton-Senaye, B., and Ibrahim, S. A. Impact of gums on the growth of probiotic microorganisms. National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology. Sept 12, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: 13. Gad El-Rab, D. A., Shahbazi, A., Ayad, A., and Ibrahim, S. A. Improve acid tolerance response of Lactobacillus sp. by adaptive evolution during acid stress. National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology. Sept 12, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Ayad, A. A., Shahbazi, A., Gad El-Rab, D. A., and Ibrahim, S. A. Improve the viability of bifidobacteria in fermented milk by coculutring with Lactobacillus paracasei 441 and inulin. National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology. Sept 12, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Obanla, T. O., Shahbazi, A., Gyawali, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Interaction between bifidobacteria strains and medical drugs. National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology. Sept 12, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Ayad, A. A., Gad El-Rab, D. A., Gyawali, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Synergistic effect of Lactobacillus paracasei 441 and inulin to improve the viability of bifidobacteria in fermented milk. Sep 12, 2013 - National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology. Sept 12, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S. A., Shahbazi, A., and Ibrahim, S. A. Impact of different metal ions on the enzymatic activity of Lactobacillus reuteri growing in a sweet potato base medium. National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology. Sept 12, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S. A., Shahbazi, A., Worku, M., and Ibrahim, S. A. Enzymatic activities of Lactobacillus grown in a sweet potato base medium. National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology. Sept 12, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Ibrahim, S.A. Food safety workshop including five presentations covered current issues related to food science and food safety. Career and Technical Education Summer Conference 2013, Family and Consumer Sciences Education. Jul-2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Gyawali, R., Radiah, A., Minor, C., and Ibrahim, S.A. Isolation and evaluation of potential probiotic bifidobacteria from sow milk. ASM General meeting May 18-21, 2013, Denver Colorado.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Obanla, T. O., Gyawali, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Interaction between Bifidobacteria Strains and Medical Drugs. ASM General meeting May 18-21, 2013, Denver Colorado.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Aljaloud, S. O., Ibrahim, S. A., Fraser, A., Song, D., and Shabazi, A. Microbiological qaily and safety of dietary supplements in Saudi Arabia. ASM General meeting May 18-21, 2013, Denver Colorado.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Ayad, A. A., El-rab, D., Gyawali, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Synergistic effect of Lactobacillus paracasei 441 and inulin to improve the viability of bifidobacteria in fermented milk. ASM General meeting May 18-21, 2013, Denver Colorado.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Usage and beliefs about dietary supplements among professional athletes in Saudi Arabia. The 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) April, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Aljaloud, S. O., Ibrahim, S.A., Giddings, V. L., and Fraser, A. M. Usage and beliefs about dietary supplements among professional athletes in Saudi Arabia. The 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) April, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S. A., Shahbazi, A., and Ibrahim, S.A. Use of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) to develop a medium for cultivation of lactic acid bacteria. The 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) April, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Gad El-Rab, D. A. and Ibrahim, S. A. Enhancing acid tolerance of Lactobacillus spp. by adaptive evolution during acid stress. The 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) April, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Ibrahim, S.A., Cheek-Crook, M., Hayek, S. A., Gyawali, R., and Tajkarimi, M. Development of food protection and defense educational material and workshops for middle school and undergraduate students. The 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) April, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Gyawali, R., Adkins, A., Minor, R. C., and Ibrahim, S. A. Effect of caffeine on survival and growth of Escherichia coli O157:H7. The 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) April, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Ibrahim, S. A. Besong, S., Hashem, F. M., Cotton, C. P. and Gyawali, R. Use of copper and ascorbic acid alone or in combination with organic acids to inactivate Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella sp. On fresh produce. The 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. (ARD) April, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Obanla, O. T., Gyawali, R. and Ibrahim, S. A. Commonly administered medications reduce the population of Bifidobacteria in the gut. 13-14th April 2013, Student research conference at Fayetteville State University.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S. A., Use of sweet potato to develop a medium for cultivation of lactobacilli. Sigma Xi Student research showcase. Mar, 2013.
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Gyawali, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Lactose Intolerance, Chapter 12, In: Milk and dairy products in human nutrition: production, composition and health, 2013. Park, Y. W. (ed.)
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S. A., Gyawali, R., and Ibrahim, S. A. Antimicrobial Natural Products Chapter 2, In: Microbial pathogens and strategies for combating them: science, technology and education. Microbiology Book Series # 4, vol. 2, 2013. A. Mendez-Vilas, E.C. (ed). Formatex Research Center, Badajoz, Spain. pp 910-921.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Gyawali, R., Adkins, A., Minor, R. C., and Ibrahim, S. A. Behavior and changes in cell morphology of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in liquid medium and skim milk in the presence of caffeine. Journal of Food. Nov 12, 2013. DOI:10.1080/19476337.2013.834977.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Aljaloud, S. O. and Ibrahim, S.A. Use of dietary supplements among professional athletes in Saudi Arabia. Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism. Vol 2013, 7 pages. 2013.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S.A., Shahbazi, A., Awaisheh S. S., Shah, N. P., and Ibrahim, S.A. Sweet Potatoes as a Basic Component in Developing a Medium for the Cultivation of Lactobacilli. Bioscience, Biotechnology and Biochemistry, Vol. 77, No. 11, 2013.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S.A., Shahbazi, A., and Ibrahim, S.A. Enzymatic activity of Lactobacillus reuteri grown in a sweet potato based medium with the addition of metal ions. SpringerPlus, Vol. 2, No.465 (2013).
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Aljaloud, S. O., Ibrahim, S. A., Fraser, A. M., Song, T., and Shahbazi, A. Microbiological quality and safety of dietary supplements sold in Saudi Arabia. Emerates Journal of Food and Agriculture. Vol 25(8), pp. 593-596. 2013.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: S.A. Hayek, S.A. and Ibrahim, S.A. Current limitations and challenges with lactic acid bacteria: A review. Food and Nutrition Sciences, Vol. 4, No. 11A, 2013.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S.A., Shahbazi, A., and Ibrahim, S.A. Enzymatic activity of Lactobacillus in a sweet potato base medium. Journal of British Microbiology Research Journal, In press, 2013.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Hayek, S.A. and Ibrahim, S.A. Consumer acceptability of chocolate chip cookies using applesauce as fat (butter) substitute. Emirates Journal of Food and Agriculture, Vol. 25, No 3 (2013). DOI: 10.9755/ejfa.v25i3.10828

Progress 01/01/12 to 12/31/12

Outputs
OUTPUTS: In this study, we have tested the impact of several drugs commonly used by elderly (Aleve, Aspirin, Glipizide, Lesinopril, and Tylenol) on the survival of five Bifidobacterium strains (B. breve, B. longum, B. infantis, B. adolescentis, and B. bifidum). Researchers have found that intake of these medicines can decrease bifidobacterial population by an average of approximately 3.0 log CFU/ml. Our findings demonstrated that intake of medications has significant affect (P < 0.05) on the survival of bifidobacteria, thus affecting probiotic functionality in the human gut. These drugs also inhibit good enzymes that protect good health. Recently, reserachers also conducted two workshops on functional foods for North Carolina middle and high school students at Pius X Catholic School in Greensboro, and Hunter Huss High school in High Point. PARTICIPANTS: Dr. Salam A. Ibrahim has worked on several probiotic and lactic acid bacteria fermentation projects and has over 20 years of experience in food safety. He has conducted many research works funded by USDA/CSREES. Dr. Mehrdad Tajkarimi, Research Associate has contributed expertise related to probiotics works especially conducted on animals. TARGET AUDIENCES: This study could provide a better understanding of how common medicine could change the behavior of beneficial micro flora in the human gut. This study will also provide information to the consumers about how probiotic could impact longevity. Therefore, the outcomes of this study will help t make the right decisions for the healthier lifestyle. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
Several previous research projects have reported on the age related physiological changes in the gastrointestinal tract that ultimately affect the gut microbial ecosystem. Prescription drugs are also believed to be the most common cause of reduction in healthy intestinal microbiota, and the elderly are among the groups affected the most. Studies of the impact of such medications on gut microbiota, especially friendly bacteria (probiotics), are very limited. Therefore, the results of this study could provide information about the impact of common drugs on probiotics in the human gut. This project will also help elderly citizens to understand the importance of probiotics, and how they can improve overall health. Findings of the project could have a major impact on reducing health costs for the elderly. In addition, this study will help to promote and implement the concept of healthy food for healthy living, ultimately increasing longevity. Since probiotics and longevity are of interest globally, this project will enable our program to create synergies with other research institutions. Researchers expect this study to provide new knowledge that can be used to positively impact human health and wellbeing, especially among the elderly.

Publications

• Song, D., Salam A. Ibrahim and Saeed Hayek. 2012. In Recent Application of Probiotics in Food and Agricultural Science in the book "Probiotics" edited by Everlon Cid Rigobelo, ISBN 978-953-51-0776-7, InTech.
• Gyawali, R., and S. A. Ibrahim. 2012. Impact of plant derivatives on the growth of foodborne pathogens and the functionality of probiotics. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology. 95:29-4.
• Obanla, T.O., R. Gyawali, S. A. Ibrahim . 2012. Impact of metoprolol, common elderly medicine on the survival of Bifidobacterium. Abstract presented at 64th Southern Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Rleigh Convention Center, Raleigh, NC.
• Obanla, T.O., Rabin Gyawali, and Salam A. Ibrahim. Impact of Commonly Administered Medical Drugs on the Survival of Bifidobacterium. Abstract submitted for IFT annual meeting 2013, Chicago, IL.
• Hayek, S.A., and Salam A. Ibrahim. Nutritional requirements and cultivation media of lactic acid bacteria: A review. Manuscript submitted to International Journal of Dairy Technology, 2013.
• Powell, A. Effect of commonly administered medical drugs on the death rate of Bifidobacterium microbiota. Poster presentation at Research Apprenticeship Program (RAP), July, 2012, NCA&T State University.

Progress 01/01/11 to 12/31/11

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Research on this project has just commenced. The researchers will: (1) Establish experiment conditions, procedures and establish the optimal operational method for the project. In this part of the project, we developed the required condition for proper operation of common medical drugs on the Bifidobacterium spp. The optimum condition includes, but is not limited to pH, temperature, growth medium condition and bacterial strains. (2) Provide a detail list of material needed to conduct the experiment according to the defined optimum condition in Step 1. (3) Develop detailed protocols for production of Bifidobacterium spp. We developed a complete standard operating procedure (SOP) for different growth conditions of the Bifidobacterium spp. to optimize interaction of the bacteria during the drug test activities. (4) Investigate on all available mathematical models for Bifidobacterium spp. production. We investigated and organized a well defined mathematical method to determine the possible responses by Bifidobacterium spp. The mathematical model will be used after exposing the medical drugs in different combinations on Bifidobacterium spp. to determine all possible combinations of the treatments without conducting the individual treatments using probability theory. PARTICIPANTS: Dr. Salam Ibrahim, Professor and PI, North Carolina A&T State University Dr. Mehrdad Tajkarimi Research associate North Carolina A&T State University TARGET AUDIENCES: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.

Impacts
It is anticipated that this proposed project will enable scientists to establish new research in the area of probiotics for human health by developing a practical research model using in-vitro experiments, mathematical modeling and animal models. The outcomes of this part of project will advance the understanding of the interaction processes between Bifidobacterium species and three common drug groups in the elderly in laboratory and animal tests. Results of this study will enable scientists to develop protocols for efficient consumption of Bifidobacterium species. Understanding of the processes involved in the use of Bifidobacterium species for production of functional and supplemental foods, and development of new consumption protocols for application of probiotics including Bifidobacterium in the elderly will be another approach. Developing an educational program to address issues related to health benefits of good bacteria on longevity is also another anticipated outcome.

Publications

• No publications reported this period