# The Antiviral Potential of Probiotics--A Review on Scientific Outcomes
## 4 Clinical Studies on the Antiviral Potential of Probiotics
The supplementation of B1-04 at a concentration of 2 \(\times\) 10\({}^{9}\) CFU per day for 28 days significantly reduced the CXCL8 response against the virus. Additionally, the nasal lavage virus titer and viral shedding in nasal secretions were reduced considerably in the probiotic-treated subjects compared to the control. The study also stated that lower respiratory inflammation was not influenced by the intervention of B1-04. The supplementation of B1-04 could have an effect on innate immunity and protects against rhinovirus infection [66]. Endurance athletes were supplemented with _L. casei_ Shirota (6.5 \(\times\) 10\({}^{9}\) CFU per day) for 20 weeks, and the changes in upper RTI symptoms and plasma Cytomegalovirusovirus (CMV) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) antibody titers were assessed. The results revealed that the supplementation of _L. casei_ Shirota did not influence the incidence and number of episodesof upper RTIs symptoms. The probiotictic intervention significantly reduced the plasma level of CMV and EBV antibody titers, which shows that the probiotic supplementation could improve the immunity against respective viral infection [67]. [PERSON] et al. [68] reported that _Saccharomyces boulardi_ supplementation (\(6\times 10^{7}\) CFU per day; 56.5 mg live cells per capsule; two capsules three times per day) for 12 weeks significantly reduced the plasma level of the Lipopolysaccharide-binding protein and IL-6, which indicates that yeast intervention reduces bacterial translocation and systemic inflammation in patients [68]. The effect of the supplementation of _S. boulardi_ on gut microbial composition and systemic inflammatory status in HIV patients has been reported by the [PERSON] group [69]. The study showed that the members of _Clostridiaceae_ family species were lower in the feces of the probiotic-treated subjects, and _Lachospiraceae_ genus and Proteobacteria abundance were also changed with respect to probiotic intervention. These candidates were closely associated with the incidence of systemic inflammation. Thus, the study results revealed that the supplementation of _S. boulardi_ could improve the inflammatory state of HIV patients via the positive regulation of gut microbial composition [69]. [PERSON] et al. [70] compared the efficiency of use of multi-strain probiotics and acyclovir in genital herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2)-infected female subjects. A six-month supplementation of probiotics (2 \(\times\) 10\({}^{9}\) CFU per capsule/two capsules per day) or acyclovir (400 mg twice daily) showed the impact on the median time to the first and second recurrence of infection. Although acyclovir treatment prolongs the time taken for the reappearance HSV-2 infection compared to the probiotic group, some of the adverse effects were noticed in the acyclovir treated groups, whereas there were no clinically important effects in the probiotic-treated group. The study showed that use of multi-strain _Lactobacillus brevis_ could be a safe and alternative therapeutic candidate to suppress the recurrence of genital HSV-2 infection in women [70].