Immune regulation by fermented milk products: the role of the proteolytic system of lactic acid bacteria in the release of immunomodulatory peptides

Abstract

Food allergies have emerged as a pressing health concern in recent years, largely due to food resources and environmental changes. Dairy products fermented by lactic acid bacteria play an essential role in mitigating allergic diseases. Lactic acid bacteria have been found to possess a distinctive proteolytic system comprising a cell envelope protease (CEP), transporter system, and intracellular peptidase. Studying the impact of different Lactobacillus proteolytic systems on the destruction of milk allergen epitopes and their potential to alleviate allergy symptoms by releasing peptides containing immune regulatory properties is a valuable and auspicious research approach. This paper summarizes the proteolytic systems of different species of lactic acid bacteria, especially the correlation between CEPs and the epitopes from milk allergens. Furthermore, the mechanism of immunomodulatory peptide release was also concluded. Finally, further research on the proteolytic system of lactic acid bacteria will provide additional clinical evidence for the possible treatment and/or prevention of allergic diseases with specific fermented milk/dairy products in the future.

Keywords:

• cell envelope protease (CEP)
• allergen epitope
• immunoregulatory peptide
• Th1/Th2 cell balance
• immune tolerance

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the Natural Science Foundation of China (32202178) for financial support.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China.