Immune Response to the Consumption of Lactobacillus GG and FOS in Patients With Recurrent Herpes Labialis

The present study showed that the daily consumption of a minidrink containing either only Lactobacillus rhamnosus or a combination of Lactobacillus rhamnosus and fructooligosaccharides significantly decreased both the occurrence and the incidence of Herpes labialis lesions after stimulation with UVR in a population with recurrent Herpes labialis. No difference in the function of either CD8+ T lymphocytes or natural killer cells was found, nevertheless a trend, that did not reach statistical significance, was observed for some of the immunological analyses pointing out towards an immunemodulating effect of probiotic or pre- and probiotic combination minidrink on the adaptive immune system. The end of study results of immune analyses were slightly improved compared to the baseline values in individuals using the probiotics or the pre- and probiotics combination minidrink, however the differences between groups did not reach the significance level. Phagocytosis and killing were clearly and statistically different in individuals that used either placebo or probiotics or pre- and probiotics minidrinks. Therefore, the probiotics and the pre- and probiotics minidrinks have an important effect on innate immunity, resulting in a significant improvement of both phagocytosis and killing. No effect was found on the quality of life of subjects. No special or unusual features of the safety evaluations were found. No serious adverse events were reported during the study.