The Smallest Intestine (TSI) - a low volume in vitro model of the small intestine with increased throughput

Tomasz Cieplak*, M. Wiese, S. Nielsen, T. Van De Wiele, F. Van Den Berg, D. S. Nielsen

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

28 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

There is a growing interest in understanding the fate and behaviour of probiotic microorganisms and bioactive compounds during passage of the human gastrointestinal tract (GIT). Here, we report the development of a small volume in vitro model called The smallest Intestine (TSI) with increased throughput focusing on simulating passage through the stomach and small intestine (SI). The basic TSI module consists of five reactors, with a working volume of 12 ml each. During the simulated passage through the SI, bile is absorbed and pH is adjusted to physiologically relevant values for duodenum, jejunum and ileum. A consortium of seven representative bacterial members of the ileum microbiota is included in the ileal stage of the model. The behaviour of three putative probiotic Lactobacillus strains during in vitro simulated upper GIT passage was tested in the model and results were compared to previous studies describing probiotic survival. It was found, that probiotic persistence is strongly related to whether food was ingested, but also to presence of the ileal microbiota, which significantly impacted probiotic survival. In conclusion, TSI allows testing a substantial number of samples, at low cost and short time, and is thus suitable as an in vitro screening platform.

Original languageEnglish
Article numberfny231
JournalFEMS Microbiology Letters
Volume365
Issue number21
Pages (from-to)1-8
ISSN0378-1097
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2018

Keywords

  • digestion
  • in vitro model
  • probiotics
  • screening
  • small intestine
  • stomach

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