According to a study published in the journal Nature Communications, bacteria in the gut offer information about the presence of several potentially harmful Candida fungus. Also, lactic acid bacteria are renowned for their potential to protect against fungal illnesses.

The human gut microbiome is a highly complicated ecosystem in which various microorganisms interact with one another. Individual species can spread and cause sickness if there is an imbalance induced by medications or other environmental conditions.

For the study, researchers examined stool samples from 75 cancer patients. They found that certain bacterial species appeared in greater numbers when the number of fungi from the Candida genus was also high. Dr. Bastian Seelbinder, the lead author of the study, explained that using this finding, they developed a computer model that was able to predict the amount of Candida Sp. in another group of patients with an accuracy of 80% based on bacterial species and amounts.

These bacteria included mainly oxygen-tolerant species. They also found an increased number of bacterial species that produce lactic acid, including Lactobacillus species. The researchers explained that lactic acid bacteria, particularly those of the genus Lactobacillus, favour Candida proliferation but at the same time make the fungus less virulent.

They hypothesized that this occurred because Candida Sp. can modify their metabolism to utilize the lactate generated by lactic acid bacteria. This offers them an advantage over other fungi, such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae. However, they also concluded that this metabolic transition appeared to prevent Candida from generating fungal hyphae, which can infiltrate the intestinal mucosa. Thus, Candida remained in its normally innocuous spherical yeast form. 

(Source: https://theprint.in/health/study-finds-how-intestinal-bacteria-effects-growth-of-fungi/1584726/ )