Determination of an antimicrobial activity of Weissella confusa, Lactobacillus fermentum, and Lactobacillus plantarum against clinical pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus in co-culture

Abstract

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have long been used to produce safe and high quality products as they are potential producers of a wide range of antimicrobial compounds that exert either narrow or wide spectrum antimicrobial activity towards spoilage or disease-causing organisms. The present investigation aimed to study the antimicrobial effect of three LAB strains, viz., Lactobacillus plantarum (86), Lactobacillus fermentum (AI2) and Weissella confusa (AI10), against two clinical pathogenic strains viz., Escherichia coli NG 502121 and Staphylococcus aureus AY 507047 in co-culture. Effects of change in inoculum size, and growth measurement at different time intervals were also studied. The pH and viable count were measured for initial as well as 24 h incubated samples. A significant (P < 0.05) reduction (2–3 log cycles) in growth of both pathogens while co-cultured with LAB strains was observed. The nonsignificant (P < 0.05) pH difference revealed the action of other metabolites apart from organic acids. LAB strains overruled the growth of E. coli and S. aureus within 10 and 6 h of the initial growth stage, respectively, compared to controls. These results led us to further characterize and purify the antimicrobial compound produced by the studied strains, so that they can be exploited in the production of safe foods with longer shelf life