Dataset Information

Ingestion of Exopolymers from Aureobasidium pullulans Reduces the Duration of Cold and Flu Symptoms: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Intervention Study.

ABSTRACT: Aim:The objective of the study was to assess the efficacy of exopolymers from Aureobasidium pullulans (EAP) on the incidence of colds and flu in healthy adults. Methods:We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study at the onset of the influenza season. A total of 76 subjects (30-70 years of age) were recruited from the general population. The subjects were instructed to take one capsule per day of either EAP or a placebo for a period of 8 weeks. The duration of cold and flu symptoms, a primary variable in assessing effectiveness, and serum cytokine levels as well as WBC counts as secondary variables were also evaluated. Results:EAP was associated with a statistically significant decrease in the duration of cold and flu symptoms, a primary variable in assessing effectiveness. Although cold and flu symptom levels were not significantly different at a significance level of 5%, the cold and flu symptom levels of the EAP group were less severe compared to the placebo group. No statistically significant changes of serum cytokine levels as well as WBC counts were observed. Conclusion:The results showed that EAP is a useful pharmaceutical and functional food material for preventing and treating colds and flu.

SUBMITTER: Lim JM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5998159 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Ingestion of Exopolymers from <i>Aureobasidium pullulans</i> Reduces the Duration of Cold and Flu Symptoms: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Intervention Study.

Lim Jong-Min JM Do Eunju E Park Dong-Chan DC Jung Go-Woon GW Cho Hyung-Rae HR Lee Seo-Young SY Shin Jae Wook JW Baek Kyung Min KM Choi Jae-Suk JS

Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM 20180530

<h4>Aim</h4>The objective of the study was to assess the efficacy of exopolymers from <i>Aureobasidium pullulans</i> (EAP) on the incidence of colds and flu in healthy adults.<h4>Methods</h4>We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study at the onset of the influenza season. A total of 76 subjects (30-70 years of age) were recruited from the general population. The subjects were instructed to take one capsule per day of either EAP or a placebo for a period of 8 weeks. The dura ...[more]

PMID: 30002717

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Project description:Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are increasingly recognized as an important mechanism for cell-cell interactions. Their role in fungi is still poorly understood and they have been isolated from only a handful of species. Here, we isolated and characterized EVs from Aureobasidium pullulans, a biotechnologically important black yeast-like fungus that is increasingly used for biocontrol of phytopathogenic fungi and bacteria. After optimization of the isolation protocol, characterization of EVs from A. pullulans by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed a typical cup-shaped morphology and different subpopulations of EVs. These results were confirmed by nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA), which revealed that A. pullulans produced 6.1 × 10^8 nanoparticles per milliliter of culture medium. Proteomic analysis of EVs detected 642 proteins. A small fraction of them had signal peptides for secretion and transmembrane domains. Proteins characteristic of different synthesis pathways were found, suggesting that EVs are synthesized by multiple pathways in A. pullulans. Enrichment analysis using Gene Ontology showed that most of the proteins found in the EVs were associated with primary metabolism. When sequencing the small RNA fraction of A. pullulans EVs, we found two hypothetical novel mil-RNAs. Finally, we tested the biocontrol potential of EVs from A. pullulans. The EVs did not inhibit the germination of spores of three important phytopathogenic fungi – Botrytis cinerea, Colletotrichum acutatum, and Penicillium expansum. However, exposure of grown cultures of C. acutatum and P. expansum to A. pullulans EVs resulted in visible changes in morphology of colonies. These preliminary results suggest that EVs may be part of the antagonistic activity of A. pullulans, which is so far only partially understood. Thus, the first isolation and characterization of EVs from A. pullulans provides a starting point for further studies of EVs in the biotechnologically important traits of the biocontrol black fungus A. pullulans in particular and in the biological role of fungal EVs in general.

Dataset Information

Ingestion of Exopolymers from Aureobasidium pullulans Reduces the Duration of Cold and Flu Symptoms: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Intervention Study.

Publications

Ingestion of Exopolymers from <i>Aureobasidium pullulans</i> Reduces the Duration of Cold and Flu Symptoms: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Intervention Study.

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