Mucosal Adhesion Properties of the ProbioticLactobacillus rhamnosusGG SpaCBA and SpaFED Pilin Subunits

Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG is a well-established Gram-positive probiotic strain, whose health-benefiting properties are dependent in part on prolonged residence in the gastrointestinal tract and are likely dictated by adherence to the intestinal mucosa. Previously, we identified two pilus gene clusters ( spaCBA and spaFED ) in the genome of this probiotic bacterium, each of which contained the predicted genes for three pilin subunits and a...