Growth of bifidobacteria in mammalian milk

Microbial colonization of the mammalian intestine begins at birth, when from a sterile state a newborn infant is exposed to an external environment rich in various bacterial species. An important group of intestinal bacteria comprises bifidobacteria. Bifidobacteria represent major intestinal microbiota during the breast-feeding period. Animal milk contains all crucial nutrients for babies’ intestinal microflora. The aim of our work was to test the influence of different mammalian milk on the growth of bifidobacteria. The growth of seven strains of bifidobacteria in human milk, the colostrum of swine, cow’s milk, sheep’s milk, and rabbit’s milk was tested. Good growth accompanied by the production of lactic acid was observed not only in human milk, but also in the other kinds of milk in all three strains of Bifidobacterium bifidum of different origin. Human milk selectively supported the production of lactic acid of human bifidobacterial isolates, especially the Bifidobacterium bifidum species. The promotion of bifidobacteria by milk is species-specific. Human milk contains a key factor for the growth of specific species or strains of human-origin bifidobacteria compared to other kinds of milk. In contrast, some components (maybe lysozyme) of human milk inhibited the growth of Bifidobacterium animalis. Animal-origin strains of bifidobacteria were not able to significantly grow even in milk of animal origin, with the exception of B. animalis subsp. lactis 1,2, which slightly grew in sheep’s milk

Growth of bifidobacteria in mammalian milk

Microbial colonization of the mammalian intestine begins at birth, when from a sterile state a newborn infant is exposed to an external environment rich in various bacterial species. An important group of intestinal bacteria comprises bifidobacteria. Bifidobacteria represent major intestinal microbiota during the breast-feeding period. Animal milk contains all crucial nutrients for babies’ intestinal microflora. The aim of our work was to test the influence of different mammalian milk on the growth of bifidobacteria. The growth of seven strains of bifidobacteria in human milk, the colostrum of swine, cow’s milk, sheep’s milk, and rabbit’s milk was tested. Good growth accompanied by the production of lactic acid was observed not only in human milk, but also in the other kinds of milk in all three strains of Bifidobacterium bifidum of different origin. Human milk selectively supported the production of lactic acid of human bifidobacterial isolates, especially the Bifidobacterium bifidum species. The promotion of bifidobacteria by milk is species-specific. Human milk contains a key factor for the growth of specific species or strains of human-origin bifidobacteria compared to other kinds of milk. In contrast, some components (maybe lysozyme) of human milk inhibited the growth of Bifidobacterium animalis. Animal-origin strains of bifidobacteria were not able to significantly grow even in milk of animal origin, with the exception of B. animalis subsp. lactis 1,2, which slightly grew in sheep’s milk

Growth of bifidobacteria in a fermented wheat germ medium

An animal protein-free culture medium was developed for the cultivation of bifidobacteria. The medium is based on fermented wheat germ (wheat germ medium; WGM), which serves as a good source of amino acids for bacteria. The number of colonies, changes in pH and optical density were compared with commercial Wilkins-Chalgren (WCB) broth and a nonmilk-based general edible medium (GEM). All bifidobacterial strains (n=9) displayed good growth on WGM. Strains of Bifidobacterium animalis, B. longum and B. breve grew on all three media tested. On the contrary, B. bifidum did not grow on GEM. WGM seems to be suitable medium for the propagation of bifidobacteria and for the production of animal protein-free probiotic food

Growth of bifidobacteria in a fermented wheat germ medium

An animal protein-free culture medium was developed for the cultivation of bifidobacteria. The medium is based on fermented wheat germ (wheat germ medium; WGM), which serves as a good source of amino acids for bacteria. The number of colonies, changes in pH and optical density were compared with commercial Wilkins-Chalgren (WCB) broth and a nonmilk-based general edible medium (GEM). All bifidobacterial strains (n=9) displayed good growth on WGM. Strains of Bifidobacterium animalis, B. longum and B. breve grew on all three media tested. On the contrary, B. bifidum did not grow on GEM. WGM seems to be suitable medium for the propagation of bifidobacteria and for the production of animal protein-free probiotic food

Pseudoscardovia suis gen. nov., sp. nov., a new member of the family Bifidobacteriaceae isolated from the digestive tract of wild pigs (Sus scrofa)

Seventeen fructose-6-phosphate phosphoketolase-positive bacterial strains were isolated from the digestive tract of wild pigs (Sus scrofa). Most of them were identified as Bifidobacterium boum according to sequences of 16S rRNA gene. Two strains isolated from the small intestine content had unusual morphology of cells in comparison with bifidobacteria. Cells growing in liquid anaerobic media were regular shaped rods arranged mostly in pairs. These isolates showed relatively low 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities (maximum identity of 94%) to members of the family Bifidobacteriaceae. Nevertheless, phylogenetic analyses of 16S rRNA, hsp60 and xfp gene sequences revealed that these strains are more related to recently described Neoscardovia, Aeriscardovia and other scardovial genera, than to Bifidobacterium species. Partial gene sequences of other phylogenetic markers showed low (65.8–89.5%) similarities to genome sequences of bifidobacteria and Gardnerella vaginalis. The major fatty acids detected in cells of the representative strain DPTE4T were C16:0, C18:1, C14:0. The peptidoglycan type of the DPTE4T strain was A3β l-Orn(l-Lys)-l-Ser(l-Ala)-l-Ala2. Polar lipid analysis revealed two phosphoglycolipids and phospholipids, a glycolipid and diphosphatidylglycerol. The results of phylogenetic, genotypic and phenotypic analyses support the proposal of a novel taxa, Pseudoscardovia suis gen. nov., sp. nov. (type strain = DPTE4T = DSM 24744T = CCM 7942T)