Evaluation of the passage of Lactobacillus gasseri K7 and bifidobacteria from the stomach to intestines using a single reactor model

Lactobacillus gasseri K7 is a strain isolated from infant faeces with properties making the strain interesting for cheese production. In this study, a single reactor system was used to evaluate the survival of L. gasseri K7 and selected bifidobacteria from our collection through the stomach-intestine passage.Initial screening for acid resistance in acidified culture media showed a low tolerance of Bifidobacterium dentium for this condition indicating low survival in the passage. Similar results were achieved with B. longum subsp. infantis whereas B. animalis subsp. lactis had a high survival.These initial results were confirmed in the bioreactor model of the stomach-intestine passage. B. animalis subsp. lactis had the highest survival rate (10%) attaining approximately 5 × 106 cfu ml-1 compared to the other tested bifidobacteria strains which were reduced by a factor of up to 106. Lactobacillus gasseri K7 was less resistant than B. animalis subsp. lactis but survived at cell concentrations approximately 1000 times higher than other bifidobacteria.In this study, we were able to show that L. gasseri K7 had a high survival rate in the stomach-intestine passage. By comparing the results with a previous study in piglets we could confirm the reliability of our simulation. Of the tested bifidobacteria strains, only B. animalis subsp. lactis showed acceptable survival for a successful passage in the simulation system.Probiotics, especially lactic acid bacteria have beneficial effects on consumers health as suggested in 1907 [1]. It was believed that bacteria mainly controlled infections caused by enteric pathogens and regulated toxoaemia, thereby improving health and influencing mortality. Meanwhile it has been known that some of the positive effects on consumers health are the improvement in the microflora balance in the gut, the stimulation of the immune system, and aiding the organism to fight pathogenic microorganisms [2]. A large part of interest was concentrated on th