Keeping Candida commensal: how lactobacilli antagonize pathogenicity of Candida albicans in an in vitro gut model.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
In vitro cell culture model (bench research)
PubMed 31413153 · doi:10.1242/dmm.039719
What was done
The authors developed an in vitro gut epithelial model using enterocytes and goblet cells co-cultured with Candida albicans and antagonistic Lactobacillus species. They assessed fungal-induced cytotoxicity and necrotic damage, fungal adhesion and invasion, hyphal elongation with Lactobacillus rhamnosus, and the mechanisms driving bacterial protection of the epithelial barrier.
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical values or statistical metrics. Qualitatively, Lactobacillus species provided time-, dose-, and species-dependent protection against C. albicans-induced epithelial cytotoxicity and necrotic damage. This protection required host-cell-supported bacterial growth but was independent of competition for adhesion sites. L. rhamnosus reduced hyphal elongation, and bacterial-driven shedding of fungal hyphae from the epithelial surface was identified as a primary protective mechanism.
Why it matters
The study establishes an in vitro model to examine commensal-like fungal-bacterial interactions and identifies bacterial-mediated hyphal shedding as a defense mechanism against mucosal epithelial damage.
Limits
As an in vitro cell culture model, it lacks systemic immune components, physiological shear flow, and full microbiota diversity. The abstract reports no quantitative measurements, sample sizes, or replication statistics.
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