Investigation of the anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties of Weizmannia coagulans MBBCM9™ and formulation of a probiotic oral health product.

Probiotics with anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory activity can help manage caries, plaque, and gingivitis. Routine oral-care products can serve as effective delivery vehicles for probiotic administration, and spore-forming probiotics are well suited for this application because they can survive, germinate, and provide sustained benefits. A spore-forming probiotic Weizmannia coagulans MBBCM9™ was selected for the study that demonstrated partial germination (28.70 ± 0.77%) in artificial saliva under in-vitro conditions within 2 h, as indicated by a reduction in OD600, while exhibiting less than 1 - log reduction in viability in the presence of herbal extracts, supporting its potential application in probiotic herbal oral-care formulations. Subsequently, the anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties of MBBCM9™ were evaluated. MBBCM9™ showed anti-microbial activity against Streptococcus mutans, with an inhibition zone of 11.33 ± 0.58 mm in an agar diffusion assay and a 46.18 ± 0.42% reduction in biofilm formation, as determined by in-vitro assays. It also significantly reduced inflammation in IL-1β induced primary gingival fibroblasts (PGF) in-vitro, with 16.01 ± 5.9% and 11.43 ± 3.13% reduction in IL-6 and IL-8 cytokine levels. We formulated a toothpaste with MBBCM9™ spore powder and herbal extracts having anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties, using suitable excipients. The formulation demonstrated desired viscoelasticity, hardness, adhesiveness, alkaline pH (8.31 ± 0.02), low water activity (0.73 ± 0.002), along with good abrasiveness, spreadability (6.06 ± 0.06 cm), and foaming capacity (56 ± 1.73 cm) and it enhanced viability of PGF cells in-vitro. Stability testing demonstrated maintenance of spore viability in the toothpaste matrix for up to 12 months.