ABSTRACT
A total of 16 isolates of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from flowers were screened for the bile salt hydrolase activity on MRS(de Man, Rogosa and Sharpe; Difco) agar supplemented with 0.5% (w/v) taurodeoxycholic acid. The isolates were dividedinto two groups based on their phenotypic characteristics and 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis of the representativeisolates. Group I isolates were cocci as the members of genus Enterococcus. Isolates FM1-1, FM1-2, FM12-1, andFM12-2 were identified as Enterococcus durans (100% similarity), isolate FM2-3 was identified as Enterococcusgallinarum (99.92% similarity), while the isolate FM11-2 was identified as Enterococcus lactis (99.77% similarity).Group II isolates were rods as the members of genus Lactobacillus. They were identified as Lactobacillus plantarumsubsp. plantarum (the representative isolates, FM3-1 and FM16-2, showed 100% similarity). Eleven isolates, includingFM1-1, FM1-2, FM2-3, FM3-1, FM4-2, FM11-2, FM12-1, FM12-2, FM14-1, FM14-2, and FM16-2, exhibited bilesalt hydrolase activity. All LAB isolates showed the cholesterol assimilated ability ranged from 9.57% to 51.69%. Theisolate FM11-2 efficiently assimilated the cholesterol with 51.69%.