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Kimchi Bacterium May Help Flush Nanoplastics From the Body

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A lactic acid bacterium from kimchi bound to nanoplastics in gut-like conditions and more than doubled their excretion in mice, WiKim researchers found.

A bacterium isolated from kimchi can bind to nanoplastics inside the intestine and may help the body remove them, according to the World Institute of Kimchi (WiKim), a government-funded research institute in South Korea operating under the Ministry of Science and ICT. The institute, led by President Hae Choon Chang, said the finding points to a possible new role for microbes long used only to ferment food.

The study was carried out by a team led by Drs. Se Hee Lee and Tae Woong Whon, who tested a kimchi-derived lactic acid bacterium, Leuconostoc mesenteroides CBA3656, against polystyrene nanoplastics. Nanoplastics are ultrafine plastic particles smaller than one micrometer - a thousandth of a millimeter - produced as larger plastic materials break down. They can enter the body through food and drinking water, and because of their tiny size they may pass through the intestinal barrier and build up in organs such as the kidneys and brain.

Under standard laboratory conditions, strain CBA3656 adsorbed 87% of the nanoplastics, close to the 85% recorded by a reference strain, Latilactobacillus sakei CBA3608. The two strains diverged sharply once tested in conditions designed to mimic the human intestine. There, the reference strain's binding rate collapsed to 3%, while the kimchi-derived strain held at 57%.

That gap is central to the result. It indicates that CBA3656 can keep binding nanoplastics even in an environment resembling the human gut, where many bacteria lose the ability.

The team then moved to animal testing using a germ-free mouse model. Both male and female mice given strain CBA3656 showed more than a twofold increase in nanoplastics detected in their feces compared with a control group that received no probiotic. The researchers said the result suggests the bacterium may aid excretion by attaching to the particles inside the intestine and carrying them out.

Until now, biological methods to cut nanoplastic accumulation in the digestive tract have remained at an early stage. The WiKim work offers evidence that lactic acid bacteria from fermented foods can interact with environmental micropollutants, a function beyond their traditional part in fermentation, and points to a possible mechanism for reducing how much plastic lingers in the gut.

"Plastic pollution is increasingly recognized not only as an environmental issue but also as a public health concern," said Dr. Sehee Lee, the study's lead researcher. "Our findings suggest that microorganisms derived from traditional fermented foods could represent a new biological approach to address this emerging challenge. We will continue to expand the scientific value of kimchi microbial resources to contribute to public health and environmental solutions."

The research does not establish that eating kimchi clears nanoplastics from people; the tests were run in the laboratory and in mice. But the results identify a specific strain that stays active under gut-like conditions and boosts nanoplastic output in animals, giving scientists a concrete candidate to study further.

kimchi bacteria nanoplastics, Leuconostoc mesenteroides CBA3656, World Institute of Kimchi, probiotic nanoplastic removal, polystyrene nanoplastics, fermented food health, gut microbes plastic, nanoplastic excretion

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