Immunomodulatory and Therapeutic Effects of Whey on Rats Infected with Diarrhoeagenic Bacteria

O. B. Olorunfemi and T. T. Adebolu*

Department of Microbiology; Federal University of Technology; Akure; Nigeria

ABSTRACT: Fermented Whey; Therapeutic Effect; Immunostimulatory; Immunomodulatory; Bacterial Diarrhoea

KEYWORDS: The effect of the consumption of fermented whey in treating diarrhoea caused by Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhi and Shigella dysenteriae in albino rats and on their hematological parameters was investigated in this study. Prior the therapeutic experiment, the antibacterial activity of fermented whey on the selected bacteria was first assayed using agar diffusion method. Fermented whey exerted growth inhibitory activity on all the test organisms with diameter of zone of inhibition ranging from 8.0mm - 13.0mm. In the therapeutic experiment, infected rats treated with fermented whey (2.0 and 2.5ml respectively) recovered by 72h while the ones that were not treated did not recover until after 120h. The administration of fermented whey also caused a significant (p<0.05) decrease in white blood cells (WBC) and neutrophils of the infected rats which went up as a result of infection to reduce to normal levels faster than in the infected and not treated rats. It however caused an increase in both lymphocytes and monocytes, cells which play significant role in maintaining the integrity of the host system. Since the consumption of fermented whey has therapeutic, immunostimulatory and immunomodulatory effects on the infected rats, it is conceivable that fermented whey can be used to treat diarrhoea caused by these organisms in humans.

[ HTML Full Text]