Probiotic fermented whey-milk beverages: Effect of different probiotic strains on the physicochemical characteristics, biological activity, and bioactive peptides.

The effect of probiotic strains (Lactobacillus acidophilus La-03 (La-03); Lactobacillus acidophilus La-05 (La-05); Bifidobacterium Bb-12 (Bb-12) or Lacticaseibacillus casei-01 (L. casei-01)) on the characteristics of fermented whey-milk beverages during storage (4 °C, 30 days) was evaluated. The products were assessed for biological and antioxidant activities, physicochemical characteristics, and bioactive peptides. Probiotic addition increased α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition and antioxidant activities, mainly at 15 days of storage. L. casei-01 showed higher metabolic activity (higher titratable acidity and lower pH values) and the presence of anti-hypertensive peptides, while La-5 and Bb-12 showed higher α-glucosidase inhibition, improvements in the high saturated hypercholesterolemic index, and peptides with ACE-inhibitory, antimicrobial, immunomodulatory, and antioxidant activities. Our findings suggest that probiotic fermented whey-milk beverages may exert antidiabetic and antioxidant properties, being suggested La-5 or Bb-12 as probiotics and 15 days of storage.

Protective Effect of Probiotics Isolated from Traditional Fermented Tea Leaves (Miang) from Northern Thailand and Role of Synbiotics in Ameliorating Experimental Ulcerative Colitis in Mice.

This study aimed to investigate the protective effect of probiotics and synbiotics from traditional Thai fermented tea leaves (Miang) on dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis in mice, in comparison to sulfasalazine. C57BL/6 mice were treated with probiotics L. pentosus A14-6, CMY46 and synbiotics, L. pentosus A14-6 combined with XOS, and L. pentosus CMY46 combined with GOS for 21 days. Colitis was induced with 2% DSS administration for seven days during the last seven days of the experimental period. The positive group was treated with sulfasalazine. At the end of the experiment, clinical symptoms, pathohistological changes, intestinal barrier integrity, and inflammatory markers were analyzed. The probiotics and synbiotics from Miang ameliorated DSS-induced colitis by protecting body weight loss, decreasing disease activity index, restoring the colon length, and reducing pathohistological damages. Furthermore, treatment with probiotics and synbiotics improved intestinal barrier integrity, accompanied by lowing colonic and systemic inflammation. In addition, synbiotics CMY46 combined with GOS remarkedly elevated the expression of IL-10. These results suggested that synbiotics isolated from Miang had more effectiveness than sulfasalazine. Thereby, they could represent a novel potential natural agent against colonic inflammation.

Effect of freeze-dried kombucha culture on microbial composition and assessment of metabolic dynamics during fermentation.

Kombucha is a traditional fermented beverage gaining popularity around the world. So far, few studies have investigated its microbiome using next-generation DNA sequencing, whereas the correlation between the microbial community and metabolites evolution along fermentation is still unclear. In this study, we explore this correlation in a traditionally produced kombucha by evaluating its microbial community and the main metabolites produced. We also investigated the effects of starter cultures processed in three different ways (control, starter culture without liquid suspension (CSC), and a freeze-dried starter culture (FDSC)) to evaluate changes in kombucha composition, such as antioxidant activity and sensory analysis. We identified seven genera of bacteria, including Komagataeibacter, Gluconacetobacter, Gluconobacter, Acetobacter, Liquorilactobacillus, Ligilactobacillus, and Zymomonas, and three genera of yeasts, Dekkera/Brettanomyces, Hanseniaspora, and Saccharomyces. Although there were no statistically significant differences in the acceptance test in sensory analysis, different starter cultures resulted in products showing different microbial and biochemical compositions. FDSC decreased Zymomonas and Acetobacter populations, allowing for Gluconobacter predominance, whereas in the control and CSC kombuchas the first two were the predominant genera. Results suggest that the freeze-drying cultures could be implemented to standardize the process and, despite it changes the microbial community, a lower alcohol content could be obtained.

Antimicrobial plant secondary metabolites, MDR transporters and antimicrobial resistance in cereal-associated lactobacilli: is there a connection?

Cereal-associated lactobacilli resist antimicrobial plant secondary metabolites. This study aimed to identify multi-drug-resistance (MDR) transporters in isolates from mahewu, a Zimbabwean fermented cereal beverage, and to determine whether these MDR-transporters relate to resistance against phenolic compounds and antibiotics. Comparative genomic analyses indicated that all seven mahewu isolates harbored multiple MATE and MFS MDR proteins. Strains of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Limosilactobacillus fermentum encoded for the same gene, termed mahewu phenolics resistance gene mprA, with more than 99% nucleotide identity, suggesting horizontal gene transfer. Strains of Lp. plantarum were more resistant than strains of Lm. fermentum to phenolic acids, other antimicrobials and antibiotics but the origins of strains were not related to resistance. The resistance of several strains exceeded EFSA thresholds for several antibiotics. Analysis of gene expression in one strain each of Lp. plantarum and Lm. fermentum revealed that at least one MDR gene in each strain was over-expressed during growth in wheat, sorghum and millet relative to growth in MRS5 broth. In addition, both strains over-expressed a phenolic acid reductase. The results suggest that diverse lactobacilli in mahewu share MDR transporters acquired by lateral gene transfer, and that these transporters mediate resistance to secondary plant metabolites and antibiotics.

Complete genome sequence and analysis of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain used for sugarcane spirit production.

Distillation of fermented sugarcane juice produces both rum and cachaça, significant sources of revenue in Brazil and elsewhere. In this study, we provide a genomic analysis of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain isolated from a cachaça distillery in Brazil. We determined the complete genome sequence of a strain with high flocculation capacity, high tolerance to ethanol, osmotic and heat shock stress and high fermentation rates and compared the sequence with that of the reference S288c genome as well as those of two other cachaça strains. Single-nucleotide polymorphism analysis identified alterations in genes involved in nitrogen and organic compound metabolism, integrity of organelles and ion homeostasis. The strain exhibited fragmentation of several flocculation genes relative to the reference genome, as well as loss of a stop codon in the FLO8 gene, which encodes a transcription factor required for FLO gene expression. The strain contained no genes not present in the reference genome strain but did lack several genes, including asparaginase genes, maltose utilization loci, and several genes from the tandem array of the DUP240 family. The three cachaça strains lacked different sets of genes, but the asparaginase genes and several of the DUP240 genes were common deficiencies. This study provides new insights regarding the selective pressure of sugarcane fermentation on the genome of yeast strains and offers additional genetic resources for modern synthetic biology and genome editing tools.

Probiotic Properties of Lactobacillus Species Isolated from Fermented Palm Sap in Thailand.

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB), which are the most frequently used probiotics in foods, confer health benefits such as antimicrobial activity, immune stimulation, and anticancer activity. Fermented palm sap is a potential source of LAB. This study aimed to evaluate in vitro antimicrobial and probiotic properties of LAB isolated from traditional fermented palm sap in Thailand. Among 40 isolated LAB species, 10 were preliminarily selected for their antimicrobial activity. These 10 isolates were identified and confirmed by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) and 16S rRNA sequencing as Lactobacillus paracasei (8/10), Lactobacillus fermentum (1/10), and Lactobacillus brevis (1/10). They were evaluated for probiotic characteristics and antimicrobial activities against pathogens. These isolates were tolerant toward simulated gastrointestinal tract conditions, including low pH, pepsin, pancreatin, and bile salts. The 10 isolates retained strong auto-aggregation and cell surface hydrophobicity, and they adhered tightly to human intestinal epithelial cells. The isolates were susceptible to ampicillin, erythromycin, clindamycin, tetracycline, and chloramphenicol but resistant to vancomycin, kanamycin, and streptomycin. Moreover, all isolates exhibited no hemolytic activity. All isolates exhibited good antibacterial activity against nine pathogenic bacteria. Thus, these 10 Lactobacillus isolates from fermented palm sap are promising potential candidates for use as probiotics in functional fermented foods and pharmaceutical products.

Development and Comparative Evaluation of a Novel Fermented Juice Mixture with Probiotic Strains of Lactic Acid Bacteria and Bifidobacteria.

As being a rapidly developing area, the production of nondairy-based functional beverages continues to accelerate considerably. In the present study, the probiotification of a mixture of the juices of Jerusalem artichoke, pineapple, pumpkin, spinach, and cucumber has been utilized for the development of probiotic fruit-vegetable juice. Lactic acid fermentation was comparatively performed by Lactobacillus acidophilus DSM13241, Lacticaseibacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei ATCC 55544, Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus ATCC53103, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum DSMZ 20174, and Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 at 37 °C for 24 h. Following, the fermented products were kept at 8 °C for 45 days, and viability of the strains were tested during the storage period, which refers 15th, 30th, and 45th days. During fermentation, the number of viable probiotic cells increased up to 9.42 log CFU/mL. Consequently, at the end of storage, all strains exhibited an acceptable amount of viability along with L. rhamnosus ATCC 53103 with the highest value reaching 9.30 log CFU/mL. The beverage was successfully scaled up in a bioreactor followed by a sensory evaluation. Statistical analysis revealed that there is a significant difference (p < 0.05) on how much the product was enjoyed between all tested samples with an average score of 3.8 out of 7.0. Thus, flavor and consumer acceptability of the beverage was improved with the addition of 30% of apple juice. The results affirm that the proposed novel fermented mixture of Jerusalem artichoke, pineapple, pumpkin, spinach, and cucumber stands as a promising functional product to be placed in the beverage market.