Bifidobacterium breve
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Its ID gene: the stretch scientists read to tell microbes apart. Each bar is one letter of its DNA. Every species has its own order of letters, so the pattern works like a fingerprint. Close relatives share most of it.
16S rRNA gene, V4 region: the 253 letters between the standard primers (515F/806R), which are the same in every species. One reference sequence; strains can differ by a letter or two. NCBI NR_040783.1
Formerly Bifidobacterium parvulorum.
Small for a gut microbe: longer than 21% of the 2,354 we have genomes for.
59% G+C, higher than 72% of gut microbes.
To scale: if its ID gene were 1 cm long, its genome would stretch 15 meters. Yours would stretch 21 kilometers. One reference genome; strains vary. NCBI GCF_001025175.1
What it can do
- Can make lactic acid What yogurt bacteria make; other microbes turn it into butyrate.
- Can ferment fiber Breaks down dietary fiber that our own enzymes can't.
- Can eat inulin A fiber in onions, garlic, leeks, chicory and bananas (also sold as FOS).
- Mixed evidence Can eat pectin A fiber in apples, citrus and other fruit. Published research reports it; genome analysis found it in none of 23 genomes.
- Can use lactose The sugar in milk and dairy.
- Can feed on gut mucus Lives on mucin, the mucus that lines the gut.
Not seen in its genomes: make butyrate, make propionate, eat resistant starch, make hydrogen sulfide, make methane.
All 13 capabilities and their evidence
| Capability | Verdict | Genome analysis | Lab tests | Published research |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Can make butyrate | Not seen | 0 of 23 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can make propionate | Not seen | 0 of 23 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can make lactic acid | Can | 23 of 23 genomes | — | Papers say yes |
| Can ferment fiber | Can | 23 of 23 genomes | 26 of 26 strains · strip test | Papers say yes |
| Can eat inulin | Can | 23 of 23 genomes | 0 of 2 strains · strip test Strip tests often miss fiber-eaters, so this doesn't override the genomes. | Papers say yes |
| Can eat resistant starch | Not seen | 0 of 23 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can eat pectin | Mixed evidence | 0 of 23 genomes | — | Papers say yes |
| Can use lactose | Can | 23 of 23 genomes | 28 of 28 strains | No papers |
| Can feed on gut mucus | Can | 1 of 23 genomes | — | Papers say yes |
| Can change bile acids | Can | 2 of 23 genomes | — | Papers say yes |
| Can make B vitamins | Can | 23 of 23 genomes | — | Papers say yes |
| Can make hydrogen sulfide | Not seen | 0 of 23 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can make methane | Not seen | 0 of 23 genomes | — | No papers |
AGORA2 (Heinken et al. 2023) via VMH, CC BY 4.0 · BacDive (DSMZ), CC BY 4.0 · NJC19 (Lim et al., Scientific Data 2020), CC0
In healthy guts
Found in 11% of healthy people.
- largest Segatella copri 6.2%
- 2nd largest Phocaeicola vulgatus 5.0%
- 3rd largest Faecalibacterium prausnitzii 4.7%
- 4th largest Bacteroides uniformis 3.2%
- 5th largest Agathobacter rectalis 2.5%
- 6th largest Alistipes putredinis 2.3%
- 7th largest Bifidobacterium longum 2.1%
- 8th largest Ruminococcus bromii 1.8%
- top 40 Bifidobacterium breve 0.6%
- 2,169 other microbes, each a sliver 56.1%
- 15.6%
On average, 0.6% of the microbes in a healthy gut: among the 40 largest slices.
Every group, drawn the same way. Only some samples record age or sex, so each group says how many people it comes from. Tap one to see it above.
In conditions
Compared with healthy people in the same studies, it’s less common in 1 condition and more common in 3 conditions. Only studies that had both are counted.
A difference is an association: it doesn’t mean this microbe causes, prevents or treats any of these.
Strongest first, then the biggest gap · Each figure is 10 peopleIn studies of how people live
“Higher” is the study’s measure: on average, a bigger share of gut bacteria across everyone in the group, carriers or not. It isn’t how many people carry it. An association the authors report, measured once per person. It doesn’t mean a diet changes this microbe, or that the microbe affects health.
Recent research
Source: PubMed, U.S. National Library of Medicine · 633 linked papers, last 10 years
Strains studied
How much each strain has been studied in people, not whether it works. Many trials test a strain inside a blend, so those are counted apart, and reviews are summaries of trials, so they're never counted as more trials.
35 strains of B. breve are named on product labels. 0 have human trials; 35 have none found yet, including Bb-03, which is in 98 products.
B. breve Bb-03
In 98 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve HA-129
In 52 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve UABbr-11
In 27 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve BR03
In 21 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve M-16V
In 18 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve BB-3
In 15 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve Bb-18
In 14 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve 19bx
In 11 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve BI-26
In 11 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve VP-7
In 11 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve BR-3
In 10 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve R0070
In 10 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve VP-116
In 10 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve UABB-11
In 8 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve CUL-74
In 6 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve SD5206
In 6 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve BI02
In 5 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve PXN 25
In 4 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve ATCC SD5206
In 3 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve VPro52
In 3 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve BBR-8
In 2 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve DSM 24732
In 2 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve IDCC 4401
In 2 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve W25
In 2 products →No human trials found yet
B. breve B632
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve Bb-30
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve BB8
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve BBr6o
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve CGMCC 6402
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve HRVD521-US
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve Lbr-35
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve R-70
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve Rosell-70
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve VP-85
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
B. breve VP-90
In 1 product →No human trials found yet
Human trials, meta-analyses and systematic reviews naming the strain · animal and lab studies not counted · Data sources