The influence of Enterococcus faecalis on the morphology and the antibody-binding capacity of the intestinal bacteria of ten healthy human volunteers.

The influence of Enterococcus faecalis on the morphology of the bacterial cells which make up the gut microflora and on the levels of circulating IgG bound to the gut microflora was assessed. After 29 days of pretreatment monitoring, ten healthy human volunteers ingested 10(7) viable cells of E. faecalis three times daily, for 21 days. After this treatment another 21 days of follow-up completed the study. Each volunteer delivered eleven faecal samples during the entire study period of 71 days with a 7 day interval. Before and after the faeces sampling period, blood samples were collected from all volunteers. The influence of the ingestion of E. faecalis on the morphology of the gut microflora was measured by image analysis. In addition, the binding of circulating IgG to intestinal bacteria in all intermediate faecal samples was measured by means of quantitative immunofluorescence. The oral administration of E. faecalis resulted in a significant change of the morphological composition of the gut microflora and in a significant decrease in IgG-binding capacity of the gut microflora.