Gut Catalase-Positive Bacteria Cross-Protect Adjacent Bifidobacteria from Oxidative Stress

Bifidobacteria isolated from infant gut and breast milk exhibited different abilities to grow under microaerobic conditions, alone or in the presence of added catalase. In the present study, we demonstrated that some Bifidobacterium strains unable to grow under microaerobic conditions were cross-protected on solid media from oxidative stress by adjacent colonies of gut catalase-positive Staphylococcus epidermidis or Escherichia coli, but not by a catalase-deficient E. coli. The results of this study support the possible contribution of catalase-positive bacteria to the establishment of certain bifidobacteria in non-anaerobic human niches of the infant gastrointestinal tract or mammary gland.