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Smart CaCO3-coated probiotics relieve constipation by enhancing intestinal motility and modulating microbial enzymes in a loperamide-induced rat model
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  • Published: 03 February 2026

Smart CaCO3-coated probiotics relieve constipation by enhancing intestinal motility and modulating microbial enzymes in a loperamide-induced rat model

  • Su-nam Jeong1 &
  • Myoung-Jin Kim1,2 

Scientific Reports , Article number:  (2026) Cite this article

We are providing an unedited version of this manuscript to give early access to its findings. Before final publication, the manuscript will undergo further editing. Please note there may be errors present which affect the content, and all legal disclaimers apply.

Subjects

  • Gastroenterology
  • Microbiology

Abstract

Constipation is a prevalent gastrointestinal disorder often associated with impaired intestinal motility and unbalanced gut microbiota. Although probiotics offer therapeutic potential, their clinical efficacy is often limited by low gastric survival and inefficient intestinal release. Herein, we developed a novel smart delivery platform by encapsulating five probiotic strains within a single-layer calcium carbonate coating, designated as Probiotics Encapsulated with Calcium carbonate (PEC). This system is designed to respond to both pH and phosphate levels, enabling targeted intestinal probiotic delivery. Using a loperamide-induced constipation rat model, we evaluated the PEC therapeutic efficacy at three doses (15, 50, and 150 mg/kg). PEC administration significantly improved key constipation indicators, including defecation frequency, fecal moisture content, and intestinal transit rate in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, PEC selectively modulated harmful microbial enzymes such as β-glucuronidase and nitroreductase without adversely impacting the beneficial β-glucosidase enzyme. It also showed a trend to reduce systemic inflammatory markers, such as TNF-α and IL-1β. Notably, the high-dose PEC group restored most parameters to levels comparable to those of the normal group. These findings suggest that the PEC platform is a promising next-generation probiotic delivery system with potential to address some limitations of conventional probiotic therapy, such as low gastric survival and inefficient intestinal release. However, without dedicated control groups for calcium carbonate alone or uncoated probiotics, the specific contributions of the encapsulation cannot be fully isolated. PEC shows strong potential for development into functional foods and therapeutic agents targeting constipation and related gastrointestinal disorders.

Data availability

Data is provided within the manuscript or supplementary information files.

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Funding

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation (NRF) of Korea grant funded by the Korean government [Grant Number RS-2024-00337666]; Commercialization Promotion Agency for R&D Outcomes (COMPA) funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) [Grant Number RS-2025-25416427], University Technology Management Promotion Project (TLO Innovation Type), National Korea Maritime & Ocean University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Engineering, Korea Maritime and Ocean University, Busan, 49112, Korea

    Su-nam Jeong & Myoung-Jin Kim

  2. Interdisciplinary Major of Ocean Renewable Energy Engineering, Korea Maritime and Ocean University, Busan, 49112, Korea

    Myoung-Jin Kim

Authors
  1. Su-nam Jeong
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  2. Myoung-Jin Kim
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Contributions

Conceptualization, M.J.K.; methodology, S.J.; data curation and formal analysis, S.J.; writing-original draft, S.J.; writing-review and editing, M.J.K.; supervision, M.J.K.; funding acquisition, M.J.K. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Myoung-Jin Kim.

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Jeong, Sn., Kim, MJ. Smart CaCO3-coated probiotics relieve constipation by enhancing intestinal motility and modulating microbial enzymes in a loperamide-induced rat model. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-37864-6

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  • Received: 27 October 2025

  • Accepted: 27 January 2026

  • Published: 03 February 2026

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-37864-6

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Keywords

  • Probiotic encapsulation
  • Calcium carbonate coating
  • Constipation
  • Smart delivery system
  • Intestinal motility
  • Microbial enzyme modulation
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