Abstract
Bile acids are important to normal human physiology. However, bile acids can be toxic when produced in pathologically high concentrations in hepatobileary and other diseases. This study shows that immobilized genetically engineered Lactobacillus plantarum 80 (pCBH1) (LP80 (pCBH1)) can efficiently hydrolyze bile acids and establishes a basis for their use. Results show that immobilized LP80 (pCBH1) is able to effectively break down the conjugated bile acids into glycodeoxycholic acid (GDCA) and taurodeoxycholic acid (TDCA) with bile salt hydrolase (BSH) activities of 0.17 and 0.07 μmol DCA/mg CDW/h, respectively. The deconjugation product, deoxycholic acid (DCA), was diminished by LP80 (pCBH1) within 4 h of initial BSH activity. This in-vitro study suggests that immobilized genetically engineered bacterial cells have important potential for deconjugation of bile acids for lowering of high levels of bile acids for therapy.