Culture Lactobacillus Plantarum Research Articles

Effect of dietary supplementation of postbiotics derived from Lactobacillus plantarum on growth performance and carcass characteristics of broiler chicken

A study was conducted at Avian Research Station, Thiruvazhamkunnu to study the effects of dietary supplementation of postbiotics derived from probiotic culture of Lactobacillus plantarum on growth performance and carcass characteristics of broiler chicken from day-old to 42 days of age. A total number of 180, day-old chicks were randomly allotted into six dietary treatment groups, viz., T1, T2, T3, T4, T5 and T6 having three replicates of ten birds each, in a completely randomised design. The birds in control group (T1) were fed with a standard broiler ration (SBR) formulated as per BIS (2007).The treatment group T2 were fed with the SBR containing chlortetracycline. Diets for T3 to T6 were formulated by inclusion of 0.15 per cent postbiotic (T3), 0.3 per cent postbiotic (T4), 0.45 per cent postbiotic (T5) and 0.6 per cent postbiotic (T6), respectively.Supplementation of 0.45 per cent postbiotic exhibited significantly (p<0.01) higher body weight, bodyweight gain and cumulative bodyweight gain than control group at six weeks of age. The feed intake, feed conversion ratio and carcass characteristics showed no significant change among the treatment groups. Keywords: Postbiotics, Lactobacillus plantarum, body weight, carcass

Use of commercial protective cultures in portioned sheep milk cheeses to control Listeria monocytogenes.

The main objective of this study was to innovate soft and semi-cooked sheep milk cheese production processes with the use of a commercial protective culture able to control Listeria monocytogenes growth. A freeze-dried commercial culture of Lactobacillus plantarum was tested in DS cheese and PS cheese, two types of pasteurized sheep milk, raw-paste cheeses aged for no less than 20 and 30 days respectively. In the first step, in vitro tests were conducted to identify the most suitable matrix for the growth of L. plantarum in order to create a subculture that could be used at industrial cheese-making plants. During the second phase of the study, L. plantarum culture was introduced in the manufacturing process of the cheeses in a production plant. Finally, a challenge test was conducted on portioned DS and PS cheeses in order to evaluate the activity of the protective culture against L. monocytogenes: the cheeses were portioned, experimentally contaminated with L. monocytogenes strains, vacuum packed and stored at +4°C (correct storage conditions) and at +10°C (thermal abuse). Cheeses were analysed at the end of the shelf-life to evaluate the presence and growth of L. monocytogenes, to enumerate lactic acid bacteria and determine chemicalphysical features. The results confirmed that protective cultures are a useful technological innovation to control L. monocytogenes growth during cheese storage without altering composition, microflora and chemical- physical characteristics of the product. However, the use of protective cultures should be applied as an integration of risk control measures and not as a substitute for preventive actions.

Anti-adhesion bioactivity of tempeh against enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli can be improved through the addition of Lactobacillus plantarum culture during fermentation

Diarrhoea is prevalently widespread in developing countries and can lead to death. This disease could be caused by a prerequisite attachment of Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) on human intestinal epithelial cells and followed by toxin production. Several antibiotics have been developed to reduce diarrhoeal severity. However, the use of antibiotics could also disrupt the balance of gut microbiota. This research found that tempeh fermented with the addition of Lactobacillus plantarum culture could decrease the adhesion of ETEC to the intestinal epithelial cells. This study measured the ability of L. plantarum to produce exopolysaccharide (EPS) and examined the effect of L. plantarum addition to tempeh, particularly its effect on anti-adhesion activity against ETEC. By using yeast agglutination assay to observe anti-adhesion activity, the data showed that soybean tempeh fermented with the addition of L. plantarum at OD600 of 0.5 had an increase of anti-adhesion bioactivity against ETEC nearly three times compared to tempeh without the addition of L. plantarum culture. Moreover, the exclusion test showed that EPS from L. plantarum could act as a preventive agent against ETEC adhesion to eukaryotic cells. Our finding indicated that the addition of lactic acid bacteria culture can be considered to augment the anti-adhesion bioactivity in soybean tempeh against ETEC.

Результати вивчення можливого впливу живої активної культури lactobacillus plantarum на показники ліпідного обміну лабораторних щурів

Objective: Study of the effect of a dietary supplement (DS), which includes a live active culture of Lactobacillus plantarum and policonazole, on lipid metabolism in rats. Results: The conducted tests revealed the dependence of changes in lipid metabolism in the body of experimental animals on the diet, intake of the studied DD or a well-known synthetic hypolipedemic drug (WSHD) and the timing of their use. Thus, enhanced nutrition of animals of all experimental groups for 45 days led to the development of obesity, as evidenced by an increase in the level of triglycerides, cholesterol, low density lipoproteins (LDL) and high density lipoproteins (HDL).The replacement of enhanced nutrition with the usual one and the simultaneous take them of DS or WSHD contributed to a significantly faster decrease in the levels of the studied parameters compared to those groups of animals that were only on the usual diet. Conclusions: It was found that the transfer of experimentally obeserats to a normal diet and the intake them of DS and/or WSHD contributed to a significant decreasein triglycerides and cholesterol, as well as the restoration of LDL and HDL levels to the values of intact animals. It was shown that the studied DS can activate metabolic processes in the body, in particular, lipid metabolism.

Improvement of Taste Enhancer Condiment Processing and Safety Using Marinade and bio-preservation of Cassava Fish (Pseudotolithus Sp)

ABSTRACT This study aims to improve Lanhouin production using marinade and mixed starter cultures of Lactobacillus plantarum and Staphylococcus xylosus as bio-preservation agents. The microbial and the physico-chemical properties of fish products obtained were characterized according to standard methods. Both combined strains developed an excellent ability to ferment fish flesh. The samples inoculated with the starter cultures had low pH value (4.7) and high level of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) (6.2 Log CFU/g) and coagulase negative Staphylococcus (CNS) (5.4 Log CFU/g) than the control samples. After 90 days of storage, the ratio of total viable count (TVC) and LAB count in the final dried products was equal to 100, as recommended by the “Federation of Trade and Distribution Companies” (FCD). Moreover, no pathogens were detected in the analyzed samples, and yeast and molds counts were less than 1 Log CFU/g.

Lactobacillus plantarum-derived extracellular vesicles protect against ischemic brain injury via the microRNA-101a-3p/c-Fos/TGF-β axis

Currently, the reported source of extracellular vesicles (EVs) for the treatment of ischemic stroke（IS）is limited to mammals. Moreover, these EVs are restricted to clinical translation by the high cost of cell culture. In this respect, Lactobacillus plantarum culture is advantaged by low cost and high yield. However, it is poorly understood whether Lactobacillus plantarum-derived EVs (LEVs) are applicable for the treatment of IS. Here, our results demonstrated that LEVs reduced apoptosis in ischemic neuron both in vivo and in vitro. As revealed by high-throughput sequencing, miR-101a-3p expression was significantly elevated by LEV treatment in OGD/R-induced neurons, as confirmed in the tMCAO mice treated with LEVs. Mechanistically, c-Fos was directly targeted by miR-101a-3p. In addition, c-Fos determined ischemia-induced neuron apoptosis in vivo and in vitro through the TGF-β1 pathway, miR-101a-3p inhibition aggravated ischemia-induced neuron apoptosis in vitro and in vivo, and miR-101a-3p overexpression produced the opposite results. Hsa-miR-101–3p was downregulated in the plasma of patients with IS but upregulated in the patients with neurological recovery after rt-PA intravenous thrombolysis. In conclusion, Our results demonstrated for the first time that LEVs might inhibit neuron apoptosis via the miR-101a-3p/c-Fos/TGF-β axis, and has-miR-101–3p is a potential marker of neurological recovery in IS patients.

The Effect of Fermentation Time on Product Quality of Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.Walp) Soft Cheese with Starter Culture of Lactobacillus plantarum B1765

This research was conducted to determine the effect of fermentation time on lactic acid bacteria (LAB), pH, total titrated acid (TTA) and organoleptic (taste, flavor, color and texture) of cowpea soft cheese (Vigna unguiculata L.Walp) with starter culture Lactobacillus plantarum B1765. L.plantarum B1765 had been studied has a probiotic characteristics. The fermentation time was 0, 6, 18 and 24 hours. The methods were total plate count (TPC) to measure the number of LAB, pH meter to measure pH, acid-base titration to measure TTA, and hedonic test for organoleptic. The results showed that the fermentation time affected the number of LAB, pH, TTA and organoleptic. The number of LAB increased by 3 log cycles from 8.7 x 106 CFU/mL to 5,3 x 109 CFU/mL. The pH value decreased from 6.53 to 3.69. The TTA value increased from 0.45% to 1.79%. The highest level of preference for taste, texture, color and flavor was at 18 hours of fermentation with a value of 3.17; 2.77; 2.70; 2.97 (likes). Cowpea soft cheese with starter L.plantarum B1765 could be improve potentially as vegetable cheese and probiotic agent.

Preliminary study on seaweed fermentation for lactic acid production

Abstract Indonesia is a maritime country that is rich in seaweed. However, seaweed fermentation into lactic acid is not yet usually. Seaweed fermentation has outstanding potential because it has the most abundant polysaccharides compared to other sources. This research aims to synthesize lactic acid by fermentation using a single culture of Lactobacillus plantarum (L. plantarum) and two substrates, namely seaweed flour and refined salt Kappa-Carrageenan (RKC). Lactic acid was analyzed by fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and its concentration was determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The proximate analysis showed that crude Fiber and starch levels in seaweed are 25.37% and 14.66% (w/w) and also in RKC are 16.45% and 1.07% (w/w), respectively. The highest reducing sugar was attained at H2SO4 2% (w/w), which were 51,184 mg/L in RKC and 24,824 mg/L in seaweed flour. Based on FT-IR data, lactic acid characteristic signals were found at broadband approximately 3000 - 3500 cm−1, which indicated the presence of OH band, a band at 1656 cm−1 revealed C=O stretching of carbonyl groups, and a band at 1118 cm−1 for C-O stretching of alcohol. Based on GC-MS data, the highest lactic acid production was 42,267 mg/L in RKC and 37,130 mg/L in seaweed flour. In this study, we can conclude that the efficiency of hydrolysis and fermentation of RKC was better than seaweed flour. However, the substrate concentration for optimum lactic acid production was unknown, so a more in-depth study was needed.

Trial productions of freeze-dried Lactobacillus plantarum culture using dairy by-products as cryoprotectants: Viability and characterization of cultures

This study is a research on the utilization of dairy industry by-products in the practical production and long-term preservation of industrial microbial cultures. Accordingly, lyophilized cultures were obtained by freeze-drying of Lactobacillus plantarum bacteria in large quantities and for a constant period of time in skimmed milk-based medium containing 5% acid casein, rennet casein, whey and demineralized whey. The cryoprotectants did not have significant protection against freeze-drying process, moreover, the use of rennet casein significantly reduced viability. The efficiency of the preservatives in preserving the viability during storage was very successful compared to the control culture. Casein-enriched cultures had high water activity and moisture, but high viability was maintained during storage. The powder morphologies of the cultures were differentiated by the use of different cryoprotectants. Particle sizes of the cultures were parallel to the moisture content. Particle size and distribution increased with storage. By thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis, it was determined that the addition of casein protein increased the degradation temperature of the cultures. The production of freeze-dried cultures became difficult with the use of casein. However, it was generally concluded that the protective properties of skimmed milk used for the preservation of L. plantarum could be improved by the addition of dairy by-products as a protective agent.

Growth performance, nutrient utilization and carcass characteristics of rabbits on probiotic supplementation

An experiment was conducted to study the effects of probiotic supplementation on growth, nutrient utilization and carcass traits in rabbits. Atotal of 60 weaner (28 days-old) Soviet Chinchilla rabbits were divided in four groups of 15 each. Pellet feed was supplemented with live microbial cultures of Lactobacillus plantarum (LP), Saccharomyces cerevisiae (SC) and combination of both L. plantarum + S. cerevisiae (LP+SC), whereas control group was supplemented with equal amount of culture medium. The rabbits were fed ad libitum pellet feed up to 84 days of age. The microbial population in feed pellets was 106 Cfu/g pellet feed. Body weight gain (28 to 84 days) was significantly (p<0.05) higher in LP+SC (1837 g) than control (1751 g), LP (1751 g) and SC (1774 g) groups. Higher digestibility of acid detergent fibre and cellulose was also recorded in LP+SC (14.6 and 22.4%) than LP (11.6 and 19.7%) and SC (11.3 and 18.8%). Carcass characteristics were not influenced in all the four treatment groups. The study suggested that supplementation of SC in feed pellets improved body weight gain in rabbits.

Microbial synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Lactobacillus plantarum for antioxidant, antibacterial activities

In this study, we proposed a method for producing stable silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) from Lactobacillus plantarum culture supernatant that is environmentally friendly and cost-effective. The biosynthesized AgNPs were characterized using various techniques, including UV–visible spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy, Energy Dispersive X-ray, and X-ray diffraction. According to the findings, the characterization verified that AgNPs have spherical and non-uniform contours with average diameters of 40-50 nm. The antioxidant and antibacterial activities of biosynthesized AgNPs were successfully investigated. In particular, the antioxidant activities had been evaluated using 1,1′-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) methods. In DPPH and H2O2 scavenging assays, synthesized AgNPs exhibited very strong antioxidant properties, with an antioxidant potential of 82.92 % and 85.44 %, respectively. In the antibacterial activity, the nanoparticles significantly suppressed bacterial growth. The synergistic effect of nanoparticles combined with chosen broad-spectrum antibiotics showed significant inhibitory growth against the tested bacteria. Antibacterial results demonstrate outstanding inhibition against urinary tract infecting pathogens ranging from 14.42 to 22.18 mm. The synergistic effect of AgNPs and certain broad-range antibiotics on uropathogenic used in the study has shown Pseudomonas aeruginosa to have a highly inhibitory growth activity.

The Effect of Using Biological Treatment on Microbial Growth during the Malting of Sorghum

Malting is an important industrial product with a huge market outlet. Sorghum grain carries a numerous and variable, microbial population that mainly consists of bacteria, yeasts, and filamentous fungi. Sorghum malt is heavily reliant on chemical control of moulds and coliforms. This research aimed at investigating ways of improving malt quality and safety, using starter cultures of lactic acid bacteria and yeast, during the steeping stage of malting. All the steep treatments contained a sizeable population of moulds, greater than 4logcfu/mL, at 0hrs of steeping. A 3Log decrease was recorded in the steep treatment containing only single culture of Lactobacillus plantarum All the steeping treatments achieved varying levels of anti-nutrient reduction. The Lactobacillus plantarum CLB8 steep reduced the phytate level by as much as 47% when compared to the phytate level in sorghum grain. The combined cultures of Lactobacillus plantarum CLB8 and Saccharomyces cerevisiaeCYT1 reduced the phytate content by as much as 40% when compared to the sorghum grain without treatment. When compared to the control steep, the Lactobacillus plantarum CLB8 steep improved the anti-nutrient degradation by 31%. The combined cultures of Lactobacillus plantarum CLB8 and Saccharomyces cerevisiae CYT1 reduced the phytate content by as much as 23% when compared with the control steep. The polyphenol content was reduced by about 46% in the Lactobacillus plantarum CLB8 steep and 29% in the combined cultures of Lactobacillus plantarum CLB8 and Saccharomyces cerevisiae CYT1 steep when compared to the polyphenol content in the whole sorghum grain. Only the Lactobacillus plantarum CLB8 steep had better polyphenol reduction than the control with a 9.6% reduction more than the control. It was concluded that lactic acid bacteria can be apply as a biological control organism in malting of grains.

Uji Prebiotik Mangga Manalagi (Mangifera indica L. var manalagi) Terhadap Pertumbuhan Lactobacillus plantarum Secara In Vitro

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Prebiotics are food ingredients that cannot be absorbed by the host and will be fermented by colonic bacteria into Short-Chain Fatty Acid. Prebiotics can come from various natural ingredients such as wheat, onions, and bananas. Prebiotic food sources can stimulate the growth of probiotic bacteria which are beneficial bacteria for the host, one of which can produce bacteriocins to fight pathogenic bacteria. Manalagi mango (Mangifera indica L. var manalagi) is a fruit that has the potential as a source of prebiotics because it contains prebiotic food requirements, including dietary fiber and carbohydrates. The purpose of this study is to find out the ability or potential of Manalagi mengkal mango as a source of prebiotics by using a prebiotic test based on the growth of BAL is Lactobacillus plantarum in vitro. The design of this study used an experimental laboratory carried out in vitro by making carbon source media with various concentrations of mango flour, then mixed with liquid MRS, and given Lactobacillus plantarum culture which then measured the carbon source medium in the form of TPC. The highest TPC average yield was 1,7 x 1010 CFU/ml is the variation in the concentration of mango flour 6.89%. Based on the results of a prebiotic test with TPC mango flour manalagi mengkal showed its ability as a source of prebiotics by stimulating the growth of BAL (Lactobacillus plantarum).&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Keywords – &lt;/strong&gt;Prebiotics, Manalagi mango, Lactobacillus plantarum&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

Inhibition the growth of fungi and improving the quality of cocoa beans through fermentation using lactic acid bacteria

The addition of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) improved the fermentation performance of cocoa bean. Uncontrolled fermentation causes the mycotoxin contamination in cocoa which is produced by fungi. Lactic Acid Bacteria that have been shown to inhibit fungi are from the species Lactobacillus plantarum and fermentum. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the ability of Lactobacillus plantarum and fermentum to increase the quality and inhibit mold growth of cocoa beans. This research was carried out using Completely Randomized Design. We examined one variable, namely the use of dry starter culture (with Lactobacillus plantarum, with Lactobacillus fermentum, with mixed culture of Lactobacillus plantarum, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Acetobacter aceti, and without starter culture). We found that the addition of Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus fermentum, Lactobacillus plantarum in combination with Saccharomycess cerevisiae and Acetobacter aceti could provide suitable temperature and pH conditions for a good fermentation process of cocoa beans and suppress the growth of fungus. Fermented cocoa beans produced by those starter cultures could meet the quality requirements of Indonesian National Standard 2323:2008/Amd1:2010.

Epigallocatechin gallate and Lactobacillus plantarum culture supernatants exert bactericidal activity and reduce biofilm formation in Clostridium perfringens.

Clostridium perfringens forms biofilms and spores that are a source of food contamination. In this study, the antibacterial activities of Lactobacillus plantarum culture supernatants (LP-S), LP-S fractions, and the plant-derived compound epigallocatechin gallate (EG) were evaluated. Specifically, their effects on the viability and biofilm-forming ability of C. perfringens were assessed. Moreover, the expression of quorum sensing-regulated genes associated with the pathogenesis of this microorganism and that of genes involved in biofilm formation was also investigated. The results showed that both EG and the LP-S exerted bactericidal activity against all C. perfringens strains tested. The minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) of EG was 75µg/mL for all strains but ranged from 61 to 121µg of total protein per mL for LP-S. EG exerted only minor effects on biofilm formation, whereas LP-S, particularly its 10 and 30K fractions, significantly reduced the biofilm-forming ability of all the strains. The antibiofilm activity of LP-S was lost following preincubation with proteases, suggesting that it was mediated by a proteinaceous molecule. The treatment of C. perfringens with either EG or LP-S did not change the transcript levels of two CpAL (C. perfringens quorum-sensing Agr-like system)-related genes, agrB and agrD, which are known to be involved in the regulation of biofilms, suggesting that LP-S exerted its biofilm inhibitory activity downstream of CpAL signaling. In summary, we demonstrated the bactericidal activity of EG and LP-S against C. perfringens and antibiofilm activity of LP-S at a subinhibitory dose. Our results suggested that these compounds can be further explored for food safety applications to control agents such as C. perfringens.

Characteristic and Isoflavone Level of Soymilk Fermented by Single and Mixed Culture of &lt;i&gt;Lactobacillus plantarum &lt;/i&gt;and Yoghurt Starter

Fermented soymilk has better health benefits compared to unfermented soymilk. The health benefits of fermented soymilk are improving blood lipid profile, antioxidants and anti-inflammatory. Fermentation of lactic acid bacteria can increase the content of aglycon isoflavones, namely genistein and daidzein. The purpose of this study was to analyze the characteristics of soymilk and isoflavone level fermented with a single culture of Lactobacillus plantarum and mixed culture of Lactobacillus plantarum and yogurt starter. This research consisted of 4 treatments, namely unfermented, fermentation using L. plantarum, fermentation using S. thermophilus and L.bulgaricus, and fermentation using L. plantarum, S. thermophillus, L. bulgaricus. Samples analyzed proximate, titratable acid , pH, total lactic acid bacteria, total daidzein, genistein and sensory quality. The results showed that the total acid, pH, and total lactic acid bacteria for fermentation with mixed cultures were higher compared to L. plantarum single culture. Total daidzein and genistein for single culture and mixed culture were not significantly different between the two groups. Sensory analysis shows that soymilk with a single culture have the highest value for the parameters of taste, aroma and color.

Trial Productions of Freeze-Dried Lactobacillus Plantarum Culture Using Dairy By-Products as Cryoprotectants: Viability and Characterization of Cultures

Trial Productions of Freeze-Dried Lactobacillus Plantarum Culture Using Dairy By-Products as Cryoprotectants: Viability and Characterization of Cultures

Cabbage (Brassica oleracea L. var. capitata) fermentation: Variation of bioactive compounds, sum of ranking differences and cluster analysis

Variation of bioactive compounds content of fermented cabbage hybrid “Bravo” heads were investigated in the present study. The fermentation process was carried out under industrial conditions using combinations of NaCl content (60, 70, 80 g/kg), starter culture Lactobacillus plantarum 14D (0, 0.025, 0.050 g/kg) and temperature (18, 22, 26 °C). The cabbage sample obtained under conditions (60 g/kg, 0 g/kg, 22 °C) was taken as a referent. Samples were analysed after 5, 12, 27, 62 days in order to measure antioxidant activity, ascorbic, oxalic, acetic, formic, lactic, and succinic acid content. Sum of ranking differences and hierarchical cluster analysis for determination of optimal fermentation conditions in terms of antioxidant activity and ascorbic acid content were applied. During the fermentation pH was monitored and the results after 12 days, 4.37–3.51, proved to be the most suitable. Additionally, antioxidant activity reached its maximum after 12 days of cabbage fermentation, in general. The best result was obtained for the sample (60 g/kg, 0.050 g/kg, 22 °C) after 12 days of fermentation with highest value of antioxidant activity 16.09 mg/mL, while content of ascorbic, oxalic, acetic, formic, lactic and succinic acid amounted, 2.97, 13.39, 0.77, 1.21, 7.58 and 0.48 g/100 g dry matter, respectively.

Local Condiment, Iru, Obtained from the Fermentation of Parkia biglobosa Seed Substantially Reduced the Serum Cholesterol Level of Wister Rats.

Hypercholesterolaemia is one of the risk factors in coronary heart disease. Hence, this research was designed to investigate the effect of iru on cholesterol levels in hypercholesterolaemic rats. The fermented condiment iru was produced naturally and with starter cultures of Lactobacillus plantarum, Bacillus subtilis, and Leuconostoc sp.. The hypercholesterolaemic rats were fed a diet supplemented with iru for 28 days, and total cholesterol, triglyceride (TG), high density lipoproteins (HDL), and low density lipoproteins (LDL) were determined before and after feeding. Cholesterol levels in hypercholesterolaemic rats (100.80 mg/dL) were reduced to 56.99∼80.21 mg/dL after feeding with iru supplementation while rats not placed on the iru diet had cholesterol levels of 119 mg/dL. There were also significant reductions (P<0.05) in serum TG (78.77∼32.57 mg/dL) and LDL (28.43∼6.63 mg/dL) levels in rats fed the iru diet compared with the control (63.36 mg/dL). Higher and significantly different (P<0.05) HDL was found in rats fed with iru fermented with L. plantarum (44.01 mg/dL) while the least was found in the untreated group (28.93 mg/dL). The results from this study suggest that supplementing the diet with iru obtained by the fermentation of Parkia biglobosa seeds may significantly reduce cholesterol level in the blood stream.

Safety Assessment of a Nham Starter Culture Lactobacillus plantarum BCC9546 via Whole-genome Analysis

The safety of microbial cultures utilized for consumption is vital for public health and should be thoroughly assessed. Although general aspects on the safety assessment of microbial cultures have been suggested, no methodological detail nor procedural guideline have been published. Herein, we propose a detailed protocol on microbial strain safety assessment via whole-genome sequence analysis. A starter culture employed in traditional fermented pork production, nham, namely Lactobacillus plantarum BCC9546, was used as an example. The strain’s whole-genome was sequenced through several next-generation sequencing techniques. Incomplete plasmid information from the PacBio sequencing platform and shorter chromosome size from the hybrid Oxford Nanopore-Illumina platform were noted. The methods for 1) unambiguous species identification using 16S rRNA gene and average nucleotide identity, 2) determination of virulence factors and undesirable genes, 3) determination of antimicrobial resistance properties and their possibility of transfer, and 4) determination of antimicrobial drug production capability of the strain were provided in detail. Applicability of the search tools and limitations of databases were discussed. Finally, a procedural guideline for the safety assessment of microbial strains via whole-genome analysis was proposed.