Reception of probiotics before radiation therapy can protect the intestines from damage
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.
We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.
If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.
Scientists from the University of Washington in St. Louis have proved that taking probiotic drugs before radiation therapy can protect the intestines from damage - at least in mice.
A new study suggests that taking probiotics can also help cancer patients avoid the development of intestinal trauma, a common problem in patients receiving radiotherapy. The study is published in the online magazine Gut.
Radiation therapy is often used to treat prostate cancer, cervix, bladder, endometrial and other abdominal cancers. But this therapy kills both cancer cells and healthy, which leads to the development of serious diarrhea due to damage to the epithelial lining of the intestine.
"For many patients, this means that radiation therapy stops or the radiation dose decreases, in order for the intestine to restore its epithelium," says Professor of Gastroenterology Nicolas V. Costrini of the University of Washington. "Probiotics can protect the small intestine mucosa from these damages."
Stenson was looking for ways to restore and protect healthy tissue from radiation. This study showed that the probiotic bacteria Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) protect the lining of the small intestine in mice receiving radiation.
"The lining of the intestine consists of only one layer of cells," says Stenson. "This layer of epithelial cells separates the body from what is inside the intestine." If the epithelium is destroyed by radiation, bacteria that normally are in the intestine can enter the bloodstream and cause sepsis. "
The researchers found that the probiotic was effective only if it was given to mice before irradiation. If the mice received a probiotic after damage to the intestinal mucosa, LGG could not repair it.
"In earlier studies, patients usually took probiotics after developing diarrhea when the intestinal cells were already injured," says the first author, Matthew A. Chorba, MD, assistant professor of medicine at the Department of Gastroenterology. "Our study shows that we should give probiotic drugs before the onset of symptoms of the disease or even before the beginning of radiation therapy, because in this case we will prevent damage, rather than alleviate the symptoms of already developed damage."
The researchers sought to assess the mechanisms of protective effects of LGG. In the past, studies have already been conducted that examined the effect of probiotics on diarrhea, but most of these studies did not study the mechanisms by which probiotics prevent the development of damage to the intestinal epithelium, "says Stenson.
Stenson and his colleagues proved that prostaglandins and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors can protect cells in the small intestine by preventing programmed cell death (apoptosis), which occurs in response to radiation.
Future research of scientists will be aimed at the allocation of radio-protective factor, produced by probiotics. By isolating and developing therapeutic doses of this substance, researchers will be able to use probiotic benefits without the use of live bacteria.
[