Antimicrobial activity of Lactobacillus plantarum against pathogenic and food spoilage microorganisms: A review

One of the most important properties of probiotic bacteria is their antimicrobial activity against many species of microorganisms which could be useful to prevent food spoilage caused by certain sensitive bacteria and fungi as well as to control the speed of propagation of potentially pathogenic bacteria by probiotic application. Lactobacillus plantarum is considered one of the probiotic bacteria with broad-est spectrum of antibacterial activity which makes it useful in veterinary, human medicine and food industry. According to a number of studies Lactobacillus plantarum exerts inhibitory activity against ma¬ny Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria – Escherichia coli (including E. coli 0157:H7), Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Helicobacter pylori, Yersinia enterocolitica, Campylobacter jejuni, Lis-teria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella, Salmonella, Shigella, Bacillus, Clostridium, Enterococcus, Lactobacillus spp., etc. as well as a number of moulds and yeasts – Aspergillus, Fusa-rium, Mucor, Candida spp., etc. The main antibacterial compounds of Lactobacillus plantarum are the bacteriocins and organic acids whereas the antifungal compounds are the organic acids, hydroxy fatty acids and cyclic dipeptides. Because of the high antifungal activity of some L. plantarum strains against food spoilage microorganisms they can be used as effective biopreservatives in food industry. Also, some L. plantarum strains could be applied as supporting therapeutic agents in treatment of infections caused by the corresponding susceptible microorganisms.