Probiotic screening and safety evaluation of lactobacillus strains from plants, artisanal goat cheese, human stools, and breast milk

Abstract

The aim of this study was to select autochthonous strains of Lactobacillus from stools of healthy infants and adults, human milk, artisanal goat cheese, and fruits and vegetables according to their probiotic properties and safety. From 421 strains of Lactobacillus isolated, 102 (24.2%) were shown to be tolerant to gastric pH and bile salts; they were used to determine their anti-Helicobacter pylori (agar diffusion assay), antioxidant (oxygen radical absorption capacity), and anti-inflammatory (inhibition of interleukin-8 release by tumor necrosis factor-α-stimulated HT-29 cells) activities as well as their ability to adhere to intestinal (Caco-2) and gastric (AGS) epithelial cells. Results obtained were compared with three commercial probiotic Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, L. plantarum 299v, and L. johnsonii NCC533. The five strains most efficient according to these activities were subsequently identified by sequencing their 16S rRNA gene, their susceptibility to antibiotics was determin