Prebiotic compositions comprising one or more types of bacteriophage
Disclosed herein are compositions that comprise one or more types of bacteriophage and methods of using such bacteriophages as a prebiotic to promote the growth of beneficial bacteria by decreasing harmful bacterial populations and releasing nutrients into the environment for good bacteria in the digestive system of an individual.
1. A method for increasing the growth of probiotic organisms in the digestive system of an individual, comprising administering a composition comprising a lytic bacteriophage of the Siphoviridae family and that is specific to Bacteroides fragilis and one or more probiotic organisms chosen from Lactobacillus species and Bifidobacterium species.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the composition comprises one or more additional bacteriophages specific to Bordetella, Borrelia, Brucella, Campylobacter, Chlamydia and Chlamydophila, Clostridium, Corynebacterium, Enterococcus, Escherichia, Francisella, Haemophilus, Helicobacter, Legionella, Leptospira, Listeria, Mycobacterium, Mycoplasma, Neisseria, Pseudomonas, Rickettsia, Salmonella, Shigella, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Treponema, Vibrio and Yersinia.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the composition further comprises one or more bacteriophages specific to E. coli B, Enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC), and E. coli O157:H7.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the probiotic organism is a Lactobacillus species.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the probiotic organism is L. acidophilus, L. amylovorus, L. brevis, L. casei, L. casei subsp. rhamnosus ( Lactobacillus GG), L. caucasicus, L. crispatus, L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus ( L. bulgaricus ), L. fermentum ( L. fermenti ), L. gasseri, L. helveticus, L. johnsonii, L. lactis, L. leichmannii, L. paracasei, L. plantarum, L. reuteri , or L. rhamnosus.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the probiotic organism is a Bifidobacterium species.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the probiotic organism is one or more B. adolescentis, B. bifidum, B. breve, B. infantis, B. lactis ( B. animalis ), B. licheniformis , and B. longum.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the probiotic organism is one or more Enterococcus faecium, Lactococcus lactis, Leuconstoc mesenteroides, Pediococcus acidilactici , and Streptococcus thermophilus.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the probiotic organism is Bacillus subtilis, Saccharomyces boulardii , or Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the composition further comprises inulin, fructooligosaccharides, galactooligiosaccharides, xylooligosaccharides, polydextrose, lactulose, tagatose, isomaltooligosaccarides, soybean oligosaccharides, lactoferrin, and proanthocyanins.
11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the amount of bacteriophage in the composition is at least 1×10 4 CFU/g.