Lactic acid bacteria alleviate neuronal excitotoxicity and extend Caenorhabditis elegans lifespan

Neuronal cell death plays a critical role in the development of neurological disorders associated with aging. This study aimed to evaluate the beneficial effects of heat-ki lled lactic acid bacteria (hkLAB) on neuroblastoma cells and Caenorhabditis elegans. We pretreated heat-killed Lactobacillus fermentum CNU384 (hkCNU384), L. brevis CNU386 (hkCNU386), L. helveticus CNU395 (hkCNU395), and L. paracasei CNU396 (hkCNU396) at a concentration of 109 CFU/mL to investigate their neuroprotective effects on glutamate-induced SH-SY5Y cells and their impact on the lifespan of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-induced C. elegans. Our findings indicate that hkCNU395 and hkCNU396 protected against glutamate-induced cell death via modulation of the Bax/Bcl-2 apoptosis regulator ratio and enhancement of endogenous antioxidant enzyme activity. Moreover, hkCNU396 significantly improves survival rates in C. elegans with neuron degeneration induced by 6-OHDA. These results highlight hkCNU396 as a promising paraprobiotic candidate for patients suffering from degenerative neurodegenerative diseases.