ILS Bhubaneswar researchers find new bacteria

BHUBANESWAR: Researchers at the Institute of Life Sciences (ILS) Bhubaneswar, have discovered a new health promoting probiotic bacteria that can be useful in the prevention and control of multiple health problems.
The Ligilactobacillus salivarious F14 has been found in the gut of tribal people of Odisha. It was the result of a research project on tribal health and nutrition started by the institute with the support of the department of biotechnology of the Centre three years ago.
Under this programme, multiple scientists of ILS are supervising different aspects of studies that could improve the health and well-being of Odisha’s tribes. In one of its studies, the ILS team planned to explore the use of beneficial microorganisms to improve the health status of these people.
Probiotics are good microbes that provide health benefits to humans and animals when taken live in adequate amounts. These helpful organisms are known to be useful in the prevention and control of multiple health problems like diarrhoea, obesity and many immunological disorders, said an ILS statement.
Shantibhusan Senapati’s group from ILS has isolated multiple probiotics and characterized those. Recently, the group has published the whole genome sequence and other probiotic properties of one of the helpful bacteria in the World journal of microbiology and biotechnology, a reputed international journal in this field.