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Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods

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A special issue of Fermentation (ISSN 2311-5637). This special issue belongs to the section "Probiotic Strains and Fermentation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2022) | Viewed by 44319

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Dr. Armin Tarrah

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Department of Food Science, Canadian Research Institute for Food Safety, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada
Interests: food microbiology; probiotics; metagenomic analysis; genome sequencing

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the last few decades, probiotics and prebiotics have gained importance due to the continuously increasing scientific evidence of their beneficial effects on human health. Additionally, they are considered the most important categories of functional foods studied and available worldwide. In addition to the abovementioned terms, other products, such as synbiotics, postbiotics, and psychobiotics, have been introduced as other promising products with documented relevant health benefits in humans. Given the importance of the matter, this Special Issue welcomes submissions with topics including:

Novel microorganisms with probiotic properties and unique advantages;
Microbiological and safety assessment of probiotics, prebiotics, and functional foods using novel approaches;
Application of probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, postbiotics, and psychobiotics in the production of novel functional foods;
Role of functional foods in human health;
Introduction and characterization of new prebiotic sources;
Studies dealing with genomics, proteomics, metabolomics applied to probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, postbiotics, and psychobiotics;
Modulation of gut microbiota by probiotics, prebiotics, and functional foods.

Dr. Armin Tarrah
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Fermentation is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

functional foods
beneficial microorganisms
probiotics
prebiotics
synbiotics
postbiotics
psychobiotics
gut microbiota
fermentation
nutrition and human health

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Published Papers (10 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research, Review

3 pages, 183 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods

by Armin Tarrah

Fermentation 2022, 8(4), 154; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation8040154 - 31 Mar 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2930

Abstract

Food biotechnology innovation and development reached an estimated growth tendency rate of 28% per year [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

Research

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22 pages, 3751 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Health Benefits of Postbiotics Produced by E. coli Nissle 1917 in Functional Yogurt Enriched with Cape Gooseberry (Physalis peruviana L.)

by Mohamed Samir Darwish, Longxin Qiu, Mohamed A. Taher, Ahmed A. Zaki, Noha A. Abou-Zeid, Dawood H. Dawood, Ola M. A. K. Shalabi, Ebtihal Khojah and Asmaa A. Elawady

Fermentation 2022, 8(3), 128; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation8030128 - 16 Mar 2022

Cited by 22 | Viewed by 5027

Abstract

Changes in the activities of antimicrobial, antitumor, and antioxidant properties of postbiotics (YCG) are related to changes in the composition of phenolic compounds. Antimicrobial activity was found to be highest in postbiotic (YCG-7) against P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, and E. faecalis with an MIC of 3.1 µg/mL. YCG-7 revealed the most cytotoxicity against LS-174T and PC-3 cell lines with an IC₅₀ of 5.78 and 6.56 µg/mL, respectively. YCG-7 was far more effective for scavenging free radicals in the NO^• and DPPH assays with a scavenging activity of 70.73% and 85.6%, respectively. YCG-7’s total phenolic acid content is up to eightfold higher compared with control. Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 retained high viable counts during refrigerated storage, particularly in YCG (>10⁸ cells g⁻¹) revealing a potential prebiotic activity of Cape gooseberry juice. EcN affected the phenolic profile of the YCG. Pyrogallol, p-coumaric acid, ellagic acid, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid, salicylic acid, gallic acid, vanillic acid, o-coumaric acid, caffeic acid, catechol, syringic acid, and rutin were the predominant phenolic compounds in YCG-7 or YCG-15. Chlorogenic, rosmarinic, cinnamic acid, naringin, and kaempferol were degraded by EcN in YCG-7 and YCG-15. The YCG had significantly higher sensory scores for appearance, smoothness, sourness, mouthfeel, and overall acceptance. These results provide the basis to target the functional benefits of YCG for further human health applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

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15 pages, 2700 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The In Vitro Analysis of Postbiotics in Functional Labneh to Be Used as Powerful Tool to Improve Cell Surfaces Properties and Adherence Potential of Probiotic Strains

by Ebtihal Khojah, Mohamed Shalaby Gomaa, Eman G. Elsherbiny, Asmaa Elawady and Mohamed Samir Darwish

Fermentation 2022, 8(3), 122; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation8030122 - 12 Mar 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3181

Abstract

Postbiotics are functional bioactive substances manufactured during fermentation in a food matrix, which can be used to improve human health, but their influence on the adhesion potential and physicochemical cell surface of probiotics is still unclear. We examined the postbiotic influence produced by Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 in functional labneh on cell surface properties (auto-aggregation, hydrophobicity, and co-aggregation) and the adhesion capacities of three probiotic strains. The most commonly detected effects of probiotics, particularly L^syn⁻⁷, were an increase in auto-aggregation, hydrophobicity, co-aggregation, and adhesion ability of the tested strains. Lactobacillus rhamnosus with L^syn−7 (59%) presented the highest hydrophobicity, whereas the least adhesion to xylene was detected in L. rhamnosus with LHM. Lactobacillus casei with L^syn⁻⁷ showed the highest auto-aggregation after 24 h (60.55%). Moreover, it also has a strong adhesion to Caco-2 cells and effectively prevents the binding of Salmonella Typhimurium to Caco-2 cells. Lactobacillus plantarum with L^syn−7 presented the strongest co-aggregation with Staphylococcus aureus (85.1%), S. typhimurium (85. 02%) and Listeria monocytogenes (77.4%). The adherence potential of tested probiotic strains was highly correlated with auto-aggregation, hydrophobicity, co-aggregation, and competitive inhibition of L. monocytogenes and S. typhimurium. The findings suggest that L^syn⁻⁷ can be a candidate to promote the adhesion potential of selected probiotic strains. For the reason that the application of probiotic strains has been more interested in their positive influences in the gastrointestinal tract, it is essential to use some functional compounds, such as postbiotics, to improve adhesion abilities and cell surface properties in terms of bacterial binding. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

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14 pages, 2107 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Natural Technology for Vacuum-Packaged Cooked Sausage Preservation with Potentially Postbiotic-Containing Preservative

by Aloizio Lemos de Lima, Carlos Alberto Guerra, Lucas Marques Costa, Vanessa Sales de Oliveira, Wilson José Fernandes Lemos Junior, Rosa Helena Luchese and André Fioravante Guerra

Fermentation 2022, 8(3), 106; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation8030106 - 28 Feb 2022

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3678

Abstract

In this study, a potentially postbiotic-containing preservative (PPCP) was produced in an axenic fermentation system with Lacticaseibacillus paracasei DTA 83 as a natural technology alternative for vacuum-packaged cooked sausage preservation. Cooked sausage-related microorganisms were obtained during the induced spoiling process in packages by pair incubation of sausages at different temperatures. The turbidity method was used to determine the microbiota susceptibility to PPCP. A controlled in situ design was performed by adding PPCP on the surface or to the mass of the sausages. Sodium lactate FCC85, which was used according to the manufacturer’s recommendation, was included in the design for comparison. The results revealed that PPCP was as efficient as FCC85, which indicates PPCP as a promising alternative to the use of natural technologies to preserve and develop functional cooked sausages. Moreover, a strategy to use preservatives in vacuum-packaged cooked sausages was presented: the concentration needed to achieve the total inhibition of the microbiota determined by an in vitro trial should be respected when adding PPCP on the sausages’ surface. When adding PPCP to the mass of the sausages, the concentration that showed a partial inhibition in vitro can also be applied in situ. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

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16 pages, 1671 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Immune Response and Fatty Acid Profile of Eggs from Laying Hens Fed Fermented Feed Rich in Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids

by Viera Karaffová, Dagmar Mudroňová, Boris Semjon, Tatiana Klempová, Ondrej Slaný, Milan Čertík, Jozef Nagy, Martin Bartkovský and Slavomír Marcinčák

Fermentation 2022, 8(3), 98; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation8030098 - 26 Feb 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2192

Abstract

Western diets are dominated by the consumption of chemically modified foods, characterized by a deficiency of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Lack of n-3 PUFAs is also present in livestock feed, which negatively affects livestock health, including immune response, and results in a low content of n-3 PUFAs in animal products. The goal of this experiment was to study the effect of the addition of feed containing PUFAs produced by the fungus Mortierella alpina on immune parameters (IgA, MUC-2, IGF-2, phagocytoses and selected lymphocyte subsets) and the composition of the intestinal microbiota of hens and egg fatty acids profile. Hens were divided into groups (control, F10—supplemented with 10% of fermented feed, F15—supplemented with 15% of fermented feed). The relative expression of all genes was markedly upregulated, mainly in the F15 group. Likewise, in F15, a significant increase in both phagocytes engulfing capacity and the level of oxidative burst was observed. Neither CD T cell subpopulations nor the CD4/CD8 ratio were significantly affected. A significant increase in small intestinal enterobacteria was observed in the F15. The fatty acid profile of eggs in both experimental groups showed an increased proportion of n-3 PUFAs and decreased n-6/n-3 PUFAs ratio. The results of this work show that the addition of 15% omega-3 acids enriched fermented feed positively affected the immune response of laying hens and improved the fatty acid composition of eggs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

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14 pages, 2432 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Characterization and Viability Prediction of Commercial Probiotic Supplements under Temperature and Concentration Conditioning Factors by NIR Spectroscopy

by Juan Pablo Aguinaga Bósquez, Esma Oǧuz, Aybike Cebeci, Mariem Majadi, Gabriella Kiskó, Zoltan Gillay and Zoltan Kovacs

Fermentation 2022, 8(2), 66; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation8020066 - 31 Jan 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 6675

Abstract

The quality of probiotics has been associated with bacteria and yeast strains’ contents and their stability against conditioning factors. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), as a non-destructive, fast, real-time, and cost-effective analytical technique, can provide some advantages over more traditional food quality control methods in quality evaluation. The aim of our study was to evaluate the applicability of NIRS to the characterization and viability prediction of three commercial probiotic food supplement powders containing lactic acid bacteria (LAB) subjected to concentration and temperature conditioning factors. For each probiotic, 3 different concentrations were considered, and besides normal preparation (25 °C, control), samples were subjected to heat treatment at 60 or 90 °C and left to cool down until reaching room temperature prior to further analysis. Overall, after applying chemometrics to the NIR spectra, the obtained principal component analysis-based linear discriminant analysis (PCA-LDA) classification models showed a high accuracy in both recognition and prediction. The temperature has an important impact on the discrimination of samples. According to the concentration, the best models were identified for the 90 °C temperature treatment, reaching 100% average correct classification for recognition and over 90% for prediction. However, the prediction accuracy decreased substantially at lower temperatures. For the 25 °C temperature treatment, the prediction accuracy decreased to nearly 60% for 2 of the 3 probiotics. Moreover, according to the temperature level, both the recognition and prediction accuracies were close to 100%. Additionally, the partial least square regression (PLSR) model achieved respectable values for the prediction of the colony-forming units (log CFU/g) of the probiotic samples, with a determination coefficient for prediction (R²Pr) of 0.82 and root mean square error for prediction (RMSEP) of 0.64. The results of our study show that NIRS is a fast, reliable, and promising alternative to the conventional microbiology technique for the characterization and prediction of the viability of probiotic supplement drink preparations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

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17 pages, 2028 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Characterization of Novel Lactobacillus paracasei HY7017 Capable of Improving Physiological Properties and Immune Enhancing Effects Using Red Ginseng Extract

by Sung-Joon Mo, Bora Nam, Chu-Hyun Bae, Soo-Dong Park, Jae-Jung Shim and Jung-Lyoul Lee

Fermentation 2021, 7(4), 238; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation7040238 - 21 Oct 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2843

Abstract

Red ginseng has powerful potential for use as a prebiotic, but its use is limited due to its antibacterial activity. The aim of this study is to present panax ginseng’s endophytic lactic acid bacteria capable to overcome the antibacterial activity of red ginseng and improve their characteristic. Lactobacillus paracasei HY7017 (HY7017) was cultured in a medium supplemented with red ginseng. The probiotic properties and immune-enhancing effects of HY7017 were investigated in vitro and in vivo. HY7017 was proliferated strongly in RGE and had significantly improved properties compared with an L. paracasei type strain ATCC25302. HY7017 cultured in RGE-supplemented medium increased the production of nitric oxide, TNF-α, and IL-6 in macrophages, and increased IL-12 and IFN-γ secretion in splenocytes. Furthermore, HY7017 restored WBC counts, increased the amount of IL-2 and IFN-γ released, and enhanced the cytotoxicity of natural killer cells when orally administered to immunosuppressed mice. Moreover, HY7017 has properties that make it suitable as a probiotic, such as stability in the gastrointestinal tract and adhesion to Caco-2 cells. This study showed that HY7017 cultured with RGE may contribute to the development of probiotics to enhance immunity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

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10 pages, 1184 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Survivability of Collagen-Peptide Microencapsulated Lactic Acid Bacteria during Storage and Simulated Gastrointestinal Conditions

by Sun-Il Kim, Jin-Woo Kim, Ki-Tae Kim and Chang-Ho Kang

Fermentation 2021, 7(3), 177; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation7030177 - 3 Sep 2021

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3728

Abstract

The intracellular homeostasis of lyophilized lactic acid bacteria (LAB) is destroyed by extreme cold stress, resulting in decreased stability. This study aimed to verify the validity of collagen as a potential protective agent for improving microbial stability deteriorated by freezing. The collagen types used in this study were low molecular weight collagen (LC) of less than 1000 Da and low molecular weight collagen-peptide (LCP) of less than 300 Da. By the accelerated stability test according to the addition of each collagen type, a 3% LCP displaying a protective effect on the viability of various LAB strains (Lactoplantibacillus plantarum MG989, Lactococcus lactis MG5125, Enterococcus faecium MG5232, Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. lactis MG741, and Streptococcus thermophilus MG5140) was finally selected. It was evaluated whether LCP enhances bacterial stability, survivability in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, and heat resistance. LCP significantly improved the viability of all strains in the GI tract compared to sucrose and skim milk, which are conventional protective agents. Based on morphological observations, LCP was uniformly coated on the cell surface, resulting in protective effects against multiple external stress stimuli. Such findings indicate the applicability of LCP as an unprecedented protective agent, which can improve the stability of various probiotics with antifreeze effects. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

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Review

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22 pages, 1284 KiB

Open AccessReview

Looking inside Mexican Traditional Food as Sources of Synbiotics for Developing Novel Functional Products

by Edgar Torres-Maravilla, Vianey Méndez-Trujillo, Natalia C. Hernández-Delgado, Luis G. Bermúdez-Humarán and Diana Reyes-Pavón

Fermentation 2022, 8(3), 123; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation8030123 - 13 Mar 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 5067

Abstract

Currently, emerging alimentary alternatives are growing, leading to the consumption of natural products including bio, fermented, and traditional foods. The studies over functional properties of food matrices and their derived compounds have resulted in the development of new functional alimentary items. However, most of the population still has limited access to, and information about, suitable foods. Analyzing traditional fermented products, we found fermented food matrices containing beneficial bacteria, with the possibility of exerting effects on different substrates enhancing the bioavailability of short-chain fatty acids (SFCAs), antioxidants, among other food-derived products. Maize (Zea mays L.), agave varieties, nopal (Opuntia ficus-indica), and beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) were key foods for the agricultural and nutritional development of Mesoamerica. We believe that the traditional Mexican diet has relevant ingredients with these functionalities and their association will allow us to develop functional food suitable for each population and their current needs. In this review, the functional properties of maize, agave, nopal, and frijol are detailed, and the functional food innovation and development opportunities for these food matrices are analyzed, which may be an important precedent for future basic and applied research. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

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29 pages, 1420 KiB

Open AccessReview

Novel Developments on Stimuli-Responsive Probiotic Encapsulates: From Smart Hydrogels to Nanostructured Platforms

by Andres J. Garcia-Brand, Valentina Quezada, Cristina Gonzalez-Melo, Angie D. Bolaños-Barbosa, Juan C. Cruz and Luis H. Reyes

Fermentation 2022, 8(3), 117; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation8030117 - 8 Mar 2022

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 7102

Abstract

Biomaterials engineering and biotechnology have advanced significantly towards probiotic encapsulation with encouraging results in assuring sufficient bioactivity. However, some major challenges remain to be addressed, and these include maintaining stability in different compartments of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT), favoring adhesion only at the site of action, and increasing residence times. An alternative to addressing such challenges is to manufacture encapsulates with stimuli-responsive polymers, such that controlled release is achievable by incorporating moieties that respond to chemical and physical stimuli present along the GIT. This review highlights, therefore, such emerging delivery matrices going from a comprehensive description of addressable stimuli in each GIT compartment to novel synthesis and functionalization techniques to currently employed materials used for probiotic’s encapsulation and achieving multi-modal delivery and multi-stimuli responses. Next, we explored the routes for encapsulates design to enhance their performance in terms of degradation kinetics, adsorption, and mucus and gut microbiome interactions. Finally, we present the clinical perspectives of implementing novel probiotics and the challenges to assure scalability and cost-effectiveness, prerequisites for an eventual niche market penetration. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Their Application in the Production of Functional Foods)

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