Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of proanthocyanidins in porcine intestinal epithelial cell - bacterium co-culture

Abstract

Nowadays, as a result of the abundant and inappropriate use of antibiotics, resistance in bacteria against these agents poses a potentially great risk in both veterinary and human medicine. The increasing prevalence of resistant strains can lead to treatment failure, which is especially important in case of infections caused by zoonotic bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica ser. Typhimurium. This phenomenon can only be overcome with the ‘One Health’ concept, where the veterinary and human fields work together in finding solutions to decrease and optimise the usage of antibiotics and to find potential antibiotic alternatives that can help in the prevention and treatment of bacterial infections. Among many natural substances, flavonoids, including proanthocyanidins (PACs), might be used for this purpose due to their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties.