Probiotic Properties of Weissella confusa PP29 on Hibiscus sabdariffa L. Media

Abstract

To date, there are very few data regarding new efficient probiotics’ development with their own prebiotic substrate. All commercial products contain prebiotic substrate that was previously purified from external sources and added to the final product. The present study describes Weissella confusa strain fermentations in media with different anthocyanin concentrations from Hibiscus sabdariffa L., in order to increase the exopolysaccharide (EPS) yield, leading to augmented probiotic and prebiotic properties. The extracted and purified EPS were characterized by Gel permeation chromatography, Fourier-transform infrared, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy; thermal analysis measurements and the whole fermented media’s probiotic properties were evaluated by testing low pH and bile salt resistance, along with hydrophobicity and auto-aggregation capacity. The anthocyanins increased biomass and EPS yields and the high EPS molecular mass improved nutrient access by allowing a good microbial suspension in media. The confirmed dextran structure provides media biocompatibility and very good probiotic properties compared with existing literature. Simultaneously, the anthocyanins in media protected the strain cells against low pH and bile salt compared with the control fermentation. These very good results show that the whole fermented culture media is suitable for further in-vitro and in-vivo studies regarding its probiotic and prebiotic activity.