This technology features the Lactobacillus fermentum MSK 408 strain, newly isolated from kimchi and deposited as KCTC18855P, as well as food and pharmaceutical compositions for preventing or treating epilepsy that utilize this strain or its cultures and ferments as an active ingredient.
Epilepsy is a common neurological disorder affecting 0.5–2% of the global population, yet existing anticonvulsants like phenytoin, valproate, and carbamazepine cause side effects such as gastrointestinal irritation and dizziness. The high-fat, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet used for drug-resistant patients also presents challenges, as it often leads to significant gut-related side effects like nausea, diarrhea, and constipation, making it difficult to maintain.
This technology enables the MSK 408 strain to reduce brain glucose metabolism and blood cholesterol, inhibit the production of the inflammatory cytokine TNF-α, and regulate blood-brain barrier permeability. It also modulates the gut microbiome by decreasing Bacteroidetes while increasing Firmicutes and Desulfobacterota. Furthermore, it alleviates seizure symptoms by increasing the expression of GABA receptors (GABAA1, GABAB1b) and the glutamate transporter GLT-1, and can be formulated for co-administration with a ketogenic diet. It can be applied to adjunctive therapies for pediatric refractory epilepsy, probiotics for use alongside ketogenic diets, and neurological health supplements, offering a new non-pharmacological management tool that reduces seizure frequency via the gut microbiome while mitigating the gastrointestinal side effects of ketogenic diets.
This invention was developed with support from the Ministry of Education for research on the protective effects of synbiotics on epilepsy and neurons.
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