SUMMARY: Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are important starter, commensal, or pathogenic microorganisms. The stress physiology of LAB has been studied in depth for over 2 decades, fueled mostly by the technological implications of LAB robustness in the food industry. Survival of probiotic LAB in the host and the potential relatedness of LAB virulence to their stress resilience have intensified interest in the field. Thus, a wealth of information concerning stress responses exists today for strains as diverse as starter (e.g., Lactococcus lactis ), probiotic (e.g., several Lactobacillus spp.), and pathogenic (e.g., Enterococcus and Streptococcus spp.) LAB. Here we present the state of the art for LAB stress behavior. We describe the multitude of stresses that LAB are confronted with, and we present the experimental context used to study the stress responses of LAB, focusing on adaptation, habituation, and cross-protection as well as on self-induced multistress resistance in stationary phase, biofilms, and dormancy. We also consider stress responses at the population and single-cell levels. Subsequently, we concentrate on the stress defense mechanisms that have been reported to date, grouping them according to their direct participation in preserving cell energy, defending macromolecules, and protecting the cell envelope. Stress-induced responses of probiotic LAB and commensal/pathogenic LAB are highlighted separately due to the complexity of the peculiar multistress conditions to which these bacteria are subjected in their hosts. Induction of prophages under environmental stresses is then discussed. Finally, we present systems-based strategies to characterize the “stressome” of LAB and to engineer new food-related and probiotic LAB with improved stress tolerance.

Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (GG) is a widely used and intensively studied probiotic bacterium. Although the health benefits of strain GG are well documented, the systematic exploration of mechanisms by which this strain exerts probiotic effects in the host has only recently been initiated. The ability to survive the harsh conditions of the gastrointestinal tract, including gastric juice containing bile salts, is one of the vital characteristics that enables a probiotic bacterium to transiently colonize the host. Here we used gene expression profiling at the transcriptome and proteome levels to investigate the cellular response of strain GG toward bile under defined bioreactor conditions. The analyses revealed that in response to growth of strain GG in the presence of 0.2% ox gall the transcript levels of 316 genes changed significantly (p < 0.01, t test), and 42 proteins, including both intracellular and surface-exposed proteins (i.e. surfome), were differentially abundant (p < 0.01, t test in total proteome analysis; p < 0.05, t test in surfome analysis). Protein abundance changes correlated with transcriptome level changes for 14 of these proteins. The identified proteins suggest diverse and specific changes in general stress responses as well as in cell envelope-related functions, including in pathways affecting fatty acid composition, cell surface charge, and thickness of the exopolysaccharide layer. These changes are likely to strengthen the cell envelope against bile-induced stress and signal the GG cells of gut entrance. Notably, the surfome analyses demonstrated significant reduction in the abundance of a protein catalyzing the synthesis of exopolysaccharides, whereas a protein dedicated for active removal of bile compounds from the cells was up-regulated. These findings suggest a role for these proteins in facilitating the well founded interaction of strain GG with the host mucus in the presence of sublethal doses of bile. The significance of these findings in terms of the functionality of a probiotic bacterium is discussed.

Summary: The growth phase during which probiotic bacteria are harvested and consumed can strongly influence their performance as health‐promoting agents. In this study, global transcriptomic and proteomic changes were studied in the widely used probiotic Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG during growth in industrial‐type whey medium under strictly defined bioreactor conditions. The expression of 636 genes ( P ≤ 0.01) and 116 proteins ( P < 0.05) changed significantly over time. Of the significantly differentially produced proteins, 61 were associated with alterations at the transcript level. The most remarkable growth phase‐dependent changes occurred during the transition from the exponential to the stationary growth phase and were associated with the shift from glucose fermentation to galactose utilization and the transition from homolactic to mixed acid fermentation. Furthermore, several genes encoding proteins proposed to promote the survival and persistence of L. rhamnosus GG in the host and proteins that directly contribute to human health showed temporal changes in expression. Our results suggest that L. rhamnosus GG has a highly flexible and adaptable metabolism and that the growth stage during which bacterial cells are harvested and consumed should be taken into consideration to gain the maximal benefit from probiotic bacteria.