Question

What is lactobacillus?

Answer 1

Hint: Lactobacillus is found in curd or frozen yoghurt and also in some other dietary supplements. It is a kind of a remedy for dehydrated patients. Lactobacillus bacteria helps in treating diarrhoea (infectious as well as severe diarrhoea which is treated using antibiotics).

Complete answer:
We are already aware that the bacillus is a type of rod-shaped bacteria. So lactobacillus are gram-positive rod-shaped bacteria. These are aerotolerant bacteria that are mostly found as endosymbiont.

The advantages of these bacteria are-
- This bacterium also gives relief to people who suffer from intestinal disorders causing large stomach pain and in the treatment of digestion problems.
- Lactobacillus acts as a remedy for treating excessive crying in infants, inflammation in the digestive tract and many other health conditions.
- This bacterium helps in the breakdown of food, absorption of nutrients and fighting off bacteria that cause diarrhoea.
- The fermented yoghurt, curd and dietary supplements carry commonly used lactobacillus acidophilus.
- Lactobacillus presence is essential in the human body in the vagina as it helps in keeping the vagina healthy and infection-free. An imbalance occurs in the vagina if there is a lack of lactobacillus and the overgrowth of a microbe.
- The fermented yoghurt contains Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus. These varieties of bacteria ferment the lactose sugar to form lactic acid.

Disadvantages-
- Although lactobacillus is a friendly bacterium, its excessive presence causes a disease called lactobacillus endocarditis. This disease should be treated on time for the survival of the individual.

Note: Lactobacillus is a type of bacteria and is friendly in nature. It lives in a good way in our digestive, urinary and genital systems.Rise in lactic acid reduces the pH of milk and causes it to clot giving a form of soft gel which is found in yogurt.