title: Comparison of the effects of hyaluronidase and hyaluronic acid on probiotics growth.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hyaluronic acid has several clinical applications. Recent evidences suggested antimicrobial properties against several pathogens. The aim of the present survey was to evaluate the effect of hyaluronic acid, alone or in combination with hyaluronidase, on protechnological or probiotic strains.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The role of hyaluronic acid and hyaluronidase on in vitro growth rate of different lactic acid bacteria was investigated. Standard methods revealed that low concentrations of hyaluronic acid (0.5-0.125 mg ml(-1)), and hyaluronidase at fixed concentration (1.6 mg ml(-1)), resulted in an increased bacterial strains growth up to 72 hours whereas higher concentrations of the acid (2 and 1 mg ml(-1)), and hyaluronidase at the same fixed concentration, reduced the bacterial growth.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Observations might suggest a possible protective role of both hyaluronidase and low doses of hyaluronic acid towards some strains, supporting their in vivo proliferation and engraftment after oral administration. Hyaluronidase introduction into growth medium greatly enhanced the bacterial growth up to 72 hours.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Chirurgia Generale e Specialità Chirurgiche, Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, via del pozzo 71 41124, Modena, Italy. alessandro811@hotmail.it.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Di Cerbo
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aponte
authors.forename: Rita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Esposito
authors.forename: Moreno
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bondi
authors.forename: Beniamino
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Palmieri
mesh_terms: D006820:Hyaluronic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D006821:Hyaluronoglucosaminidase / Q000378:metabolism*; D056546:Lactobacillales / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D019936:Probiotics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D006820:Hyaluronic Acid; D006821:Hyaluronoglucosaminidase