INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE OF MATERIAL IN ASCII TEXT FILE

This application incorporates by reference the Sequence Listing contained in the following ASCII text file:

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TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a strain ofLactobacillus gasseriKBL697 and the use thereof. More specifically, the present invention relates to a health functional food composition having at least one effect selected from the group consisting of alleviation of allergic symptoms, alleviation of inflammatory symptoms, improvement of intestinal health, and immunoregulation; an anti-fungal composition; and a pharmaceutical composition for the treatment of at least one disease selected from the group consisting of allergic diseases, inflammatory diseases, intestinal diseases, and autoimmune diseases, comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of a novel probiotic strain ofLactobacillus gasseriKBL697, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain.

BACKGROUND ART

Probiotics refer to microorganisms and the resulting products therefrom having antimicrobial activities and enzyme activities to help the balance of intestinal microorganisms. In addition, probiotics are also defined as live bacteria in the form of a single or multiple strain(s) to improve intestinal flora when provided to human or animals in the form of dry cells or fermentation products. Probiotics must inhabit the human gut, be non-pathogenic and non-toxic, and survive long enough until they arrive at the intestine. Further, probiotics must maintain viability and activities until they are consumed in the food delivered, be sensitive to antibiotics used to prevent infection, and do not have antibiotic-resistant plasmids. Also, probiotics must be resistant to acids, enzymes, and bile in the intestinal environment.

These probiotics may include, for example,Bacillussp. having an excellent ability to produce digestive enzymes such as amylase, protease, lipase, cellulase, and phosphatase,Lactobacillussp. producing lactic acid, and photosynthetic bacteria preventing stink by way of using the stink-causing substances (such as ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and amines) remaining in the feces of livestock in metabolic process. Recently, probiotics have been reported to have various health function improvement effects including improvement of intestinal health, and thereby spotlighted as major therapeutic substances which can replace existing compound-based therapeutic agents.

Meanwhile, allergy is a biochemical phenomenon that exhibits a unique, altered response to a foreign substance (antigen, allergen). The foreign substance which causes symptoms is called allergen, while the diseases from those symptoms are called allergic diseases. Allergy is a pathological process in the living body resulting from the antigen-antibody reaction. In general, there are four types of allergies depending on the period to trigger the reaction and the complement involvement. Type 1, among those, is anaphylactic type (immediate type) in which target organs are mostly digestive organs, skin and lungs, and the common symptoms include gastrointestinal allergy, urticaria, atrophodermatitis, allergic rhinitis, and bronchial asthma, etc. The pathological mechanism of Type 1 is known as follows: when antigens contact IgE antibodies attached to the surface of mast cells and basophilic leukocytes, the target cells are activated to secrete chemical transmitters such as histamine, leukotriene, and PAF, and then blood vessels and smooth muscles are contracted. Such mechanism can be often combined with Type 4 (delayed type). In other words, such anaphylaxis and allergic reaction can arise due to a variety of changes in the mast cells, etc. The activation of mast cells, which leads to degranulation, is caused by binding of antigen, anti-IgE, lectin, etc. to Fc receptors, stimulation of anaphylatoxin, etc., or other drugs such as calcium ionophore, compound 48/80, codeine and synthetic adrenocorticotropic hormone.

Mast cells and basophil leukocytes in blood are known as main cells in the body to cause many allergic diseases such as allergic rhinitis, allergic dermatitis, asthma, food allergy and anaphylactic shock. These cells have receptors (FcRI) on their surfaces for IgE which is an antibody causing allergy, and the cells are stimulated by the allergy-causing substances (antigen, allergen) to secrete their own various allergy-causing substances out of the cells (Kim K et al, Eur J Pharmacol, 581:191-203, 2008).

Among allergic diseases, atopic dermatitis, as widely known to the public, is a chronic recurrent skin disease that affects newborns or children and may persist until adulthood. Like asthma or allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis is an inflammatory skin disease associated with local infiltration of T-lymphocyte which produces IL-4 and IL-5. IL-4, as well known to the public, controls the development of the T helper 2 (Th2) phenotype, resulting in overproduction of immunoglobulins (Ig) and eosinophilia, and increase of serum IgE levels. 80-90% of the subjects who were positive to the skin test regarding food and inhalant allergens were found to have atopic dermatitis.

There are different treatments for treating or preventing allergic diseases and atopic dermatitis, but no effective treatment has been found yet. Some drug-based treatments are known, but even a short term administration of the drug for the treatment would develop a tolerance and a long-term administration may cause serious side effects, and thus such drug-based treatments of allergic diseases and atopic dermatitis have been avoided recently. Under the circumstances, without treatment having any absolute, obvious effect, irritating symptoms such as itching and redness of skin in addition to allergy often fail to improve.

Meanwhile, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a symptom characterized by abdominal pain, and/or irritations associated with changed intestinal movement or bowel habits, such symptoms cannot be explained with anatomic or biochemical abnormality. Common symptoms of IBS also include urinary urgency, bloating and feeling of incomplete intestinal movement. Accordingly, IBS can be classified as functional gastrointestinal disorders comprising conditions such as functional bloating, non-cardiac chest pain, non-ulcerative dyspepsia, and chronic constipation or diarrhea. In particular, in the case of IBS, since the related symptoms affect both well-being and normal function aspects of patients, the disease has a huge impact on morbidity and quality of life, beyond abdominal pain and discomfort.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a condition in which abnormal chronic inflammation in the intestine repeats improvement and recurrence, comprising all intestinal inflammatory diseases, such as Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, or Behcet's disease, but not limited thereto. Many researches have been conducted in the field of drug development to treat IBS and IBD. In this regard, various antidepressants are commonly used, even though the efficacy thereof in clinical trials is moderate and the clinical utility thereof is limited due to significant side effects. Serotonergic medications have also been proved to have efficacy against overall IBS symptoms. However, the application of these medications has been restricted in various ways due to recent several safety problems. Accordingly, there is increasing interest in developing a new therapeutic agent for IBS.

WO 96/29083 and EP 554418 disclose two types ofLactobacillusstrains which form colonies in bowel, i.e.,Lactobacillus plantarum299v (DSM 6595) andLactobacillus caseissp.rhamnosus271 (DSM 6594), etc. EP 415941 discloses a method for preparing a nutrient composition, comprising treating oat gruel with enzymes before mixing it with lactobacilli. U.S. Pat. No. 7,195,906 discloses a strain ofBifidobacteriumisolated from resected and washed human gastrointestinal tract for the treatment of inflammatory diseases, especially gastrointestinal inflammatory activity such as IBD and IBS.

However, no strain having excellent effects on improving intestinal health, for example, treatment of IBD and IBS has been found yet, and in order to find strains having such effects, many research institutions have been working on.

Under the circumstances, the present inventors devoted themselves to studies of probiotics to find a way to replace drug-based treatments for allergic diseases, including atopic dermatitis, which have no satisfactory treatments. And therefore, the present invention was completed by confirming that a novel strain ofLactobacillus gasserishowed excellent therapeutic effects on allergic diseases such as atopic dermatitis, and further confirming that said strain also showed superior effects on anti-fungal activity, intestinal health, immunoregulation, and inhibition of inflammation.

SUMMARY

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a novel strain showing excellent effects on alleviation of allergic symptoms such as atopic dermatitis, alleviation of inflammatory symptoms, anti-fungal activity, improvement of intestinal health, and immunoregulation, and a variety of uses thereof.

In order to achieve the purpose, the present invention providesLactobacillus gasseriKBL697 strain (Accession No. KCTC 13520BP).

Also, the present invention provides a food composition or food additive composition comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of said strain, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain.

The present invention provides a feed composition or feed additive composition comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of said strain, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain.

The present invention also provides an anti-fungal composition, such as an anti-dandruff composition, comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of said strain, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain.

The present invention also provides a pharmaceutical composition for the treatment of allergic diseases such as atopic dermatitis, inflammatory diseases, intestinal diseases and/or autoimmune diseases, comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of said strain, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain.

The present invention also provides a method for treating allergic diseases including atopic dermatitis, inflammatory diseases, intestinal diseases and/or autoimmune diseases, comprising administering at least one selected from the group consisting of said strain, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain to a subject in need thereof.

The present invention also provides a composition comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of said strain, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain, for the use of preventing or treating allergic diseases including atopic dermatitis, inflammatory diseases, intestinal diseases and/or autoimmune diseases.

The present invention also provides the use of a composition for preparing a preventive or therapeutic drug for allergic diseases including atopic dermatitis, inflammatory diseases, intestinal diseases and/or autoimmune diseases, comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of said strain, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain.

The present invention also provides a cosmetic composition comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of said strain, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain.

The present invention also provides a cosmetic patch or a medical patch comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of said strain, cultures of said strain, lysates of said strain, and extracts of said strain.

