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Weissella cibaria CMS1 (oraCMS1) has been commercially used in Korea as an oral care probiotic for several years. Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and the influenza A virus (H1N1) are representative viruses that cause infantile lower respiratory tract infections. Rotavirus A (RVA) is the most common cause of diarrhea in infants and young children. Here, we aimed to evaluate the efficacy of the cell-free supernatant (CFS) of oraCMS1 in inactivating RSV, H1N1, and RVA in suspension as per ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) E1052-20. The mixture of oraCMS1 and these viruses was evaluated at contact times of 1, 2, and 4 h. Virucidal activity was measured using a 50% tissue culture infective dose assay (log 10 TCID 50 ) after infecting the host cells with the viruses. The CFS of oraCMS1 inactivated RSV by up to 99.0% after 1 h and 99.9% after 2 and 4 h, and H1N1 and RVA were inactivated by up to 99.9% and 99.0% at 2 h, respectively. Although these in vitro results cannot be directly interpreted as implying clinical efficacy, our findings suggest that oraCMS1 provides a protective barrier against RSV, H1N1, and RVA, and therefore, it can help decrease the risk of respiratory tract and intestinal infections., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

The possibility of preventing dental caries by taking probiotic bacterium Weissella cibaria ( W. cibaria ) CMU tablets to alter the pH of the dental plaque in the oral cavity was evaluated. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was performed on adults aged 20 years or older with 20 or more natural teeth. Ninety-two people underwent dental scaling before being randomly assigned to the experimental group ( n = 49) or the control group ( n = 43). Depending on the group they belonged to, W. cibaria CMU or the placebo was administered to them once daily for 8 weeks before bedtime. Twenty-four subjects were later excluded from the study because the week 8 dosing was not smoothly performed, for a final subject count of 68. The Cariview test was used to evaluate the amount of acid produced by the dental plaque to assess the risk of caries. The results showed that although there was no significant difference between the results of the two groups, the intake of the W. cibaria CMU tablets eliminated the risk of developing dental caries from acid production in the oral flora because the W. cibaria colonizes and lives in the dental plaque and the oral cavity and suppresses acids.

Altogether, 81% of Korean college students experience halitosis and concomitant psychosocial problems such as depression and lowered self-esteem, as well as poor oral-health-related quality of life. Although halitosis causes many social and psychological problems among college students, there have been no reports of improvement interventions. This study aimed to identify the effects of ingesting tablets of the oral probiotic Weissella cibaria CMU (Chonnam Medical University, Gwangju, Korea) on halitosis and examine its effects on psychosocial indicators. This was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The participants were randomly assigned to the experimental group or the control group. They ingested W. cibaria CMU or the placebo, depending on which group they belonged to, before going to bed daily for eight weeks. The measured indicators were subjective halitosis, subjective oral-health status, depression, self-esteem, and oral-health-related quality of life. Measurements were at baseline and eight weeks later. The participants showed statistically significant differences in subjective halitosis and oral-health-related quality of life. For college students with halitosis, intake of the oral probiotic for eight weeks could be a useful nursing intervention for reducing halitosis and improving oral-health-related quality of life.

Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease caused by various periodontal pathogens. Weissella cibaria CMU (oraCMU) is a probiotic that promotes oral health. However, its anti‑inflammatory effects against periodontal pathogens have not yet been investigated. The present study evaluated the anti‑inflammatory effects of live oraCMU against stimulation with the formalin‑inactivated periodontal pathogen Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Cell viability was analyzed by the MTS assay in a dose‑dependent manner (at multiplicities of infection of 0.1, 1, 10, 100 and 1,000). Nitric oxide (NO) was monitored using the Griess test. The mRNA expression of proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin (IL)1β and IL6 was assessed by reverse transcription‑quantitative PCR. Western blotting was used to examine the effects of oraCMU on the phosphorylation of NF‑κB inhibitor α (IκBα) and IκBα kinase (IKK), the nuclear translocation of the NF‑κB subunit p65 and the expression of inducible NO synthase (iNOS). Live oraCMU had no cytotoxic effects on RAW 264.7 macrophages. In A. actinomycetemcomitans‑stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages, oraCMU reduced NO production by suppressing iNOS expression and downregulating the mRNA expression of proinflammatory cytokines in a dose‑dependent manner. IKK phosphorylation and IκBα degradation were dose‑dependently inhibited by oraCMU and the nuclear translocation of p65 via the canonical NF‑κB pathway was simultaneously reduced. The results indicated that oraCMU possessed anti‑inflammatory activity associated with the inhibition of NF‑κB signal activation in response to periodontal pathogens. This suggests that oraCMU is a beneficial anti‑inflammatory probiotic that can aid in the maintenance of oral health.

Background: Weissella cibaria CMU (oraCMU) has been commercially available in the market for several years as oral care probiotics. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of oraCMU-containing tablets on periodontal health and oral microbiota., Methods: A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted in 92 adults without periodontitis (20-39 years of age). All subjects received dental scaling and root planing, and were randomly assigned to either probiotic or placebo groups. The tablets were administered once daily for 8 weeks. Periodontal clinical parameters included bleeding on probing (BOP), probing depth (PD), gingival index (GI), and plaque index (PI). In addition, microbiota in the gingival sulcus were analysed., Results: BOP improved more in the probiotic group over 8 weeks. There were statistically significant differences in BOP of the maxilla buccal and lingual sites between the groups during the intervention (P < 0.05). No significant inter-group differences in PD, GI, and PI were observed during the intervention. Oral bacteria were observed to be fewer in the probiotic group. There was a significant change in levels of Fusobacterium nucleatum at four and 8 weeks between the two groups. Besides, there were significant differences at 8 weeks in levels of Staphylococcus aureus., Conclusions: We reported an improvement in BOP and microbial environment and demonstrated the antimicrobial activity of oraCMU against F. nucleatum. Thus, its supplementation may contribute to overall oral health., Trial Registration: Ethical issues approved by the Kangwon National University Institutional Review Board with a number of KWNUIRB-2018-05-003-005 and CRIS code Number of KCT0005078 were retrospectively registered on 06/02/2020. This study was conducted in the period of July to November 2018.

Halitosis is referred to as an unpleasant odor coming from the mouth. Recently, probiotics have been studied as an alternative prevention for halitosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of probiotic bacterium Weissella cibaria Chonnam Medical University (CMU)-containing tablets (1 × 10 8 colony forming units [CFU]/g) on oral malodor. The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted in 92 healthy adults (20-39 years of age) with bad breath. All subjects were randomly assigned to a test (probiotic, n  = 49) or control (placebo, n  = 43) group after dental scaling and root planing. The tablets were taken once daily for 8 weeks. Measurements included an organoleptic test (OLT), volatile sulfur compounds (VSC), bad breath improvement (BBI) scores, and the oral colonization of W. cibaria CMU. This study also assessed safety variables of adverse reactions, vital signs, and the findings of hematology and blood chemistry. Most of the variables were measured at baseline, 4, and 8 weeks. Safety-related variables were measured at baseline and 8 weeks. At week 4, a significant decrease in OLT and VSC results was observed in the test group while BBI scores were significantly reduced at week 8 ( P  < .05). Statistically significant intergroup differences were observed for changes in W. cibaria number at weeks 4 and 8. No safety issues were encountered in either group. These results indicate that W. cibaria CMU tablets could be a safe and useful oral care product for controlling bad breath.

Weissella cibaria CMU and CMS1 are known to exert beneficial effects on the oral cavity but have not yet been determined to be generally recognized as safe (GRAS), although they are used as commercial strains in Korea. We aimed to verify the safety of W. cibaria CMU and CMS1 strains through phenotypic and genotypic analyses. Their safety was evaluated by a minimum inhibitory concentration assay for 14 antibiotics, DNA analysis for 28 antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and one conjugative element, antibiotic resistance gene transferability, virulence gene analysis, hemolysis, mucin degradation, toxic metabolite production, and platelet aggregation reaction. W. cibaria CMU showed higher kanamycin resistance than the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) cut-off, but this resistance was not transferred to the recipient strain. W. cibaria CMU and CMS1 lacked ARGs in chromosomes and plasmids, and genetic analysis confirmed that antibiotic resistance of kanamycin was an intrinsic characteristic of W. cibaria. Additionally, these strains did not harbor virulence genes associated with pathogenic bacteria and lacked toxic metabolite production, β-hemolysis, mucin degradation, bile salt deconjugation, β-glucuronidase, nitroreductase activity, gelatin liquefaction, phenylalanine degradation, and platelet aggregation. Our findings demonstrate that W. cibaria CMU and CMS1 can achieve the GRAS status in future., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Recently, studies have explored the use of probiotics like the Weissella cibaria strain, CMU (oraCMU), for use as preventive dental medicine instead of chemical oral care methods. The present study was conducted to investigate the antibacterial properties of the cell-free supernatant (CFS) from this bacterium. Cell morphology using the scanning electron microscope, and the antibacterial effect of CFS under various growth conditions were evaluated. The production of hydrogen peroxide, organic acids, fatty acids, and secretory proteins was also studied. Most of the antibacterial effects of oraCMU against periodontal pathogens were found to be acid- and hydrogen peroxide-dose-dependent effects. Lactic acid, acetic acid, and citric acid were the most common organic acids. Among the 37 fatty acids, only 0.02% of oleic acid (C18:1n-9, cis ) was detected. Proteomic analysis of the oraCMU secretome identified a total of 19 secreted proteins, including N -acetylmuramidase. This protein may be a potential anti-microbial agent effective against Porphyromonas gingivalis .

Probiotics have been demonstrated as a new paradigm to substitute antibiotic treatment for dental caries, gingivitis, and chronic periodontitis. The present work was conducted to compare the characteristics of oral care probiotics: Weissella cibaria CMU (Chonnam Medical University) and four commercial probiotic strains. Survival rates under poor oral conditions, acid production, hydrogen peroxide production, as well as inhibition of biofilm formation, coaggregation, antibacterial activity, and inhibition of volatile sulfur compounds were evaluated. The viability of W. cibaria CMU was not affected by treatment of 100 mg/L lysozyme for 90 min and 1 mM hydrogen peroxide for 6 h. Interestingly, W. cibaria produced less acid and more hydrogen peroxide than the other four probiotics. W. cibaria inhibited biofilm formation by Streptococcus mutans at lower concentrations ( S. mutans /CMU = 8) and efficiently coaggregated with Fusobacterium nucleatum . W. cibaria CMU and two commercial probiotics, including Lactobacillus salivarius and Lactobacillus reuteri , showed high antibacterial activities (>97%) against cariogens ( S. mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus ), and against periodontopathogens ( F. nucleatum and Porphyromonas gingivalis ). All of the lactic acid bacterial strains in this study significantly reduced levels of hydrogen sulfide and methyl mercaptan produced by F. nucleatum and P. gingivalis ( p < 0.05). These results suggest that W. cibaria CMU is applicable as an oral care probiotic.

In this study, we evaluated the in vitro anti-biofilm, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory activity of Weissella cibaria CMU (CMU), an oral probiotic, against periodontopathogens. Compared to other oral probiotics, CMU showed a superior inhibitory effect on the biofilm formation and growth of Streptococcus mutans on orthodontic wires and artificial teeth (p < 0.05). CMU exerted potent antibacterial effects against S. mutans and Porphyromonas gingivalis according to a line test. In human gingival fibroblasts (HGFs) stimulated by P. gingivalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum, or Prevotella intermedia, CMU suppressed the gene expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines [interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1β, IL-8, and tumor necrosis factor-α] in a dose-dependent manner (p < 0.05). CMU restored the production of the tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 following its inhibition by P. gingivalis, and it suppressed the expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1 and -3 induced by periodontopathogens (p < 0.05). Moreover, CMU needed direct contact with HGFs to exert their anti-inflammatory function, indicating that they act directly on gingival cells to modulate local inflammation. Our preclinical study provides evidence for the potential benefits of topical CMU treatments in preventing the development of caries and periodontitis caused by the dysbiosis of the dental plaque microbiome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Periodontitis is associated with dysbiosis of microbial flora in the oral cavity. We evaluated the effects of an oral care probiotic, Weissella cibaria CMU, on periodontal tissue destruction and regulation of inflammatory cytokines in mice with ligature-induced periodontitis (LIP).Methods: Fourteen-day LIP model was used. Ninety animals were randomly divided into six groups: negative control (Ctrl), positive control (LIP/Ctrl), PBS-treated (LIP/PBS), W. cibaria-low (1 × 107 colony forming unit (CFU)/d; LIP/WC-L), W. cibaria-medium (1 × 108 CFU/d; LIP/WC-M), and W. cibaria-high (1 × 109  CFU/d; LIP/WC-H). After the 14-day treatment, alveolar bone loss was determined using micro-computed tomography. The gingival tissue and serum samples from Ctrl, LIP/Ctrl, and LIP/WC-H groups were immunoassayed for cytokines. Measurements of Porphyromonas gingivalis, total bacteria, and W. cibaria in the gingiva were performed using real-time polymerase chain reaction.Results: Mice in the LIP/WC-H group showed significant reduction in alveolar bone loss at the distal aspect of the ligatured teeth compared to those in the LIP/Ctrl group. There was a dose-dependent reduction (non-significant) in periodontal tissue destruction with increased W. cibaria concentration. Pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines were significantly lower in LIP/WC-H than in LIP/Ctrl. The LIP/WC-H group showed significantly fewer total bacteria compared to the LIP/Ctrl group but it was similar to that in Ctrl groups, and P. gingivalis was not detected in the gingival tissue.Conclusions: W. cibaria CMU reduces periodontal tissue destruction apparently by regulating the production of inflammatory cytokines and by reducing oral bacteria in a model for periodontal disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Weissella cibaria CMU and CMS1 are known to exert beneficial effects on the oral cavity but have not yet been determined to be generally recognized as safe (GRAS), although they are used as commercial strains in Korea. We aimed to verify the safety of W. cibaria CMU and CMS1 strains through phenotypic and genotypic analyses. Their safety was evaluated by a minimum inhibitory concentration assay for 14 antibiotics, DNA analysis for 28 antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and one conjugative element, antibiotic resistance gene transferability, virulence gene analysis, hemolysis, mucin degradation, toxic metabolite production, and platelet aggregation reaction. W. cibaria CMU showed higher kanamycin resistance than the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) cut-off, but this resistance was not transferred to the recipient strain. W. cibaria CMU and CMS1 lacked ARGs in chromosomes and plasmids, and genetic analysis confirmed that antibiotic resistance of kanamycin was an intrinsic characteristic of W. cibaria. Additionally, these strains did not harbor virulence genes associated with pathogenic bacteria and lacked toxic metabolite production, β-hemolysis, mucin degradation, bile salt deconjugation, β-glucuronidase, nitroreductase activity, gelatin liquefaction, phenylalanine degradation, and platelet aggregation. Our findings demonstrate that W. cibaria CMU and CMS1 can achieve the GRAS status in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]