Properties of probiotic bacteria explored by proteomic approaches
Résumé
The study of health-beneficial effects that probiotic bacteriacan exert on humans and animals is at its beginning. Pendingscientific questions include the identification of molecularmarkers of the health-promoting activity of specific strains,which may be used to select novel probiotic strains and to gainunderstanding of the mechanisms underlying their effects. Inthat perspective, the role of bacterial proteins must beevaluated, placing proteomics-based approaches at the coreof the field. Until now, most proteomic analyses focused on thedynamics of abundant cytoplasmic proteins during adaptationof bacteria to conditions mimicking the gastro-intestinal tractenvironment. The development of in silico and experimentalprocedures allowing identification and quantification ofsurface-exposed and secreted proteins should boost ourunderstanding of bacteria–host crosstalk.