Clinical Effects of Probiotics are Associated with Increased Transforming Growth Factor-β Responses in Infants with High-Risk Allergy

We recently demonstrated that the administration of probiotics resulted in a significantly reduced occurrence of atopic dermatitis in infants with high allergic risk. Therefore, the underlying immunological effects that are associated with these apparent clinical benefits were determined. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, the pregnant women and their infants with a family history of allergic diseases were supplemented with either probiotics (mixture of Bifidobacterium bifidum BGN4, Bifidobacterium lactis AD011, and Lactobacillus acidophilus AD031) or placebo once daily from 4–8 weeks before delivery to 6 months of infants’ age. At 1 year of age, the levels of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β produced by peripheral blood monuclear cells from infants fed probiotics were significantly increased compared with those from infants fed placebo (p=0.042). Thus, reduction of atopic dermatitis prevalence with probiotics supplementation was associated with significant increases in the capacity of TGF-β responses.