ABSTRACT
Bifidobacteria are rarely pathogens, and it is unlikely that this will change even with improved laboratory techniques to identify them in the clinical setting. The clinical relevance of bifidobacteria lie in their positive features. Their role in improving survival statistics in the breast-fed infant is documented, and their potential for improving the well-being of the adult is currently being investigated. There are numerous physiological questions regarding bifidobacteria that are extremely interesting and whose solution can contribute significantly to our understanding of the microbiological world. Many clinical investigators consider a bifidobacterial flora in the large intestine to be beneficial to the infant. For this reason, numerous attempts have been and are being made to devise dietary regimens that would maintain the bifidobacteria as the predominant organism in the artificially fed infant. In conclusion, the area of bifidobacterial chemistry and physiology and their clinical applications provides varied and potentially fruitful and rewarding research possibilities.
