Protective role of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts as dietary carcinogen-binding agents - a review

The importance of food contaminants in the link between diet and cancer has been widely demonstrated. Therefore, different physical and chemical strategies for the control of human exposure to such dietary carcinogens has been explored; however, most of these strategies are complex, costly, and have low efficiency which limited their applications. Hence, microbiological methods have been receiving more attention. Recent in vitro and in vivo studies have indicated that lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and yeast may act as dietary carcinogen-binding agents. This review describes the promising protective role of strains belonging mainly to theLactobacillus,BifidobacteriumandSaccharomycesgenera by acting as dietary carcinogen-binding agents. This property suggests that these microorganisms may have a protective role by reducing the bioaccessibility of dietary carcinogens, thereby decreasing their toxic effects. The mechanisms by which the binding process takes place have not been completely elucidated; thus, the possible underlying mechanisms and factors influencing carcinogens-binding will be addressed.

Automated summary

The importance of food contaminants in the link between diet and cancer has been widely demonstrated. Different strategies have been explored to control human exposure to dietary carcinogens, but most of them are complex, costly, and have low efficiency. Microbiological methods, particularly lactic acid bacteria and yeast, have received more attention recently as dietary carcinogen-binding agents, potentially reducing the toxic effects of carcinogens by reducing their bioaccessibility.