Lactic acid starter and probiotic bacteria: a comparative “in vitro” study of probiotic characteristics and biological barrier resistance

Probiotic characteristics (deconjugation of bile salts, hydrophobicity and β-galactosidase activity) and the resistance to biological barriers (gastric juice and bile salts) of 24 strains of lactic acid starter bacteria ( Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Lactococcus lactis) and 24 strains of probiotic bacteria ( Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus rhamnosus and bifidobacteria) were compared. Among the probiotic bacteria tested, Lactobacillus acidophilus was the most interesting species since it showed high values of resistance to gastric juice and bile, hydrophobicity and β-galactosidase and bile salts deconjugation activities. Bifidobacterium bifidum strains showed the same behavior, although the values of the parameters investigated were slightly lower than those obtained for Lactobacillus acidophilus. On the other hand, it was demonstrated that Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus was the lactic acid starter species with the best probiotic characteristics among the starter species assessed. It was resistant to gastric juice and bile, and showed high values for β-galactosidase activity. On the other hand, lactic acid starter bacteria showed hydrophobicity values similar to or higher than those obtained for the strains of the Lactobacillus casei . According to the results found, the total probiotic value of a fermented dairy product should take into account not only the intestinal probiotic cultures used in the formulation but also the probiotic contribution of the lactic acid starter microflora.