EVALUATION OF PROBIOTIC POTENTIAL OF SELECTED LABCULTURESANITA RAISAGAR AND SANGEETA SHUKLAAbstract To provide a beneficial effect on the host, every potential probiotic culture is expected to tolerate the condition of the GI tract. The ability to tolerate acid, bile salt, NaCl, phenol, and temperature is considered a good indicator for the survival of bacterial culture in the GI tract, and these characteristics are often assessed in vitro in the preliminary selection of probiotic culture. In the present study, the probiotic potential of two LAB namely Lactobacillus casei and Bifidobacterium bifidum was studied. Among the selectedLAB one was aerobic (Lactobacillus casei) and the other was anaerobic (Bifidobacterium bifidum). The studiedprobiotic potential parameters were bile tolerance, pH tolerance, NaCl tolerance, phenol tolerance, andtemperature sensitivity. Both the selected LAB showed survival in all tested concentrations of bile (0.5%,1.0%, 1.5% and 2%), NaCl (1-10%), and phenol (0.1-0.4%). The growth of selected LAB showed a negative tendency towards increasing concentrations of probiotic potential parameters. In the tested pH rangesLactobacillus casei showed survival in pH ranges from pH 3 to pH 8 while Bifidobacterium bifidum showedsurvival with pH 3 to pH 7. In both cases, the optimum pH for growth was pH 7. Both the LAB was ableto grow in all tested temperatures range. |