News Release

Live liquid bacteria reduces intestinal inflammation in ulcerative colitis

Latest research shows benefits of liquid probiotic in the reduction of inflammation in ulcerative colitis

Peer-Reviewed Publication

Spink Health

Live Liquid Bacteria Reduces Intestinal Inflammation in Ulcerative Colitis

image: People with ulcerative colitis may benefit from taking the live, multi-strain probiotic drink, Symprove, to reduce intestinal inflammation, according to the results of a new study presented today at Digestive Disease Week 2015. view more 

Credit: Symprove

Washington DC, 17 May 2015: People with ulcerative colitis ¬may benefit from taking the live, multi-strain probiotic drink, Symprove, to reduce intestinal inflammation, according to the results of a new study presented today at Digestive Disease Week 2015.1

Researchers from King's College Hospital in London and Darent Valley Hospital in Kent in the UK conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of Symprove on patients with clinically-stable inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and found that patients with ulcerative colitis had significant reductions in faecal levels of calprotectin - a protein released by white blood cells in the intestine when it is inflamed. These findings suggest that Symprove may help patients with ulcerative colitis to remain in clinical remission.

What is ulcerative colitis?

Ulcerative colitis is a life-long relapsing-remitting intestinal condition in which the colon and rectum become ulcerated and inflamed. The acute symptoms of ulcerative colitis include abdominal cramping, bloody diarrhoea, and urgency to pass stools. Effective treatments for acute flare-ups include steroids, immune suppressants and biologics, but there remains a need for effective maintenance treatments to prevent clinical relapse of the disease.

Probiotics have been thought to be symptomatically useful in patients with ulcerative colitis, with 51% of sufferers taking them in a bid to help manage their condition2. However, not all probiotics contain multiple strains of live, active bacteria. Symprove, the only liquid probiotic preparation that contains 4 strains of live bacteria, has previously been shown in scientific studies to survive the harsh acidic environment of the stomach in order to flourish in the gut 3 and to improve symptom severity in people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).4

Symprove in ulcerative colitis: latest data

In the latest study, 80 adults with ulcerative colitis (all in remission at the time of study entry) were randomized to receive either Symprove or a matching placebo drink for 1 month. Faecal calprotectin levels were measured before and after treatment. Reductions in calprotectin levels (intestinal inflammation) were observed in the majority (76%) of patients with ulcerative colitis who took Symprove for 4 weeks and the decrease in intestinal inflammation was significantly greater than in the placebo group.

Professor Ingvar Bjarnason, consultant gastroenterologist and Principal Investigator of the study, noted "This is an interesting result showing that Symprove reduces intestinal inflammation in this group of patients, without any observed side effects. There is now a need to see if these reductions in intestinal inflammation are maintained with long term ingestion and whether this reduces the incidence of symptom flare-ups."

###

World IBD Day - 19 May 2015. Five million people living with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis all over the world are encouraged by leading global patient organisations to share their story in a short video with the theme of "United We Stand." See http://www.worldibdday.org/.

For further information or to interview the study author, please contact:
Polly Cooper/Mortimer Pockett
SPINK
Tel: 01444 811099
Email: polly@spinkhealth.com / mortimer@spinkhealth.com

Editors Notes:

What is Symprove?

Symprove is a live multi-strain liquid bacteria derived from barley. The unique water-based formula allows the bacteria to survive the low pH of the stomach and bile salts of the upper digestive tract.

A month's supply costs £79 and a 12 week programme is recommended.

Available from http://www.symprove.com or by calling 01252 413 600.

Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) is the largest international gathering of physicians, researchers and academics in the fields of gastroenterology, hepatology, endoscopy and gastrointestinal surgery. Jointly sponsored by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute, the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) and the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract (SSAT), DDW takes place May 16-19, 2015, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington, DC. The meeting showcases more than 5,000 abstracts and hundreds of lectures on the latest advances in GI research, medicine and technology. More information can be found at http://www.ddw.org.

References

1. Sisson G, Hayee B, Bjarnason I. Assessment of a multi strain probiotic (Symprove) in IBD. Poster presentation at Digestive Disease Week 2015 (DDW2015), 16¬-19 May 2015, Washington DC, USA.

2. Hedin C, Mullard M, Sharratt E, Jansen C, Sanderson J, Shirlaw P, How L, Stagg A, Lindsay J, Whelan K. Probiotic and Prebiotic Use in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Case-Control Study. Inflammatory Bowel Disease 2010.

3. Fredua-Agyeman M, Gaisford S. Comparative survival of commercial probiotic formulations: tests in biorelevant gastric fluids and real-time measurements using microcalorimetry. Benefic Microbes 2015;6(1):141-51.

4. Sisson G, Ayis S, Sherwood RA, Bjarnason I. Randomised clinical trial: a liquid multi-strain probiotic vs. placebo in the irritable bowel syndrome - a 12-week double-blind study. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2014;40:51-62. Available at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/apt.12787/pdf.


Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.