Flow cytometric viability assessment of lactic acid bacteria starter cultures produced by fluidized bed drying.

For starter culture production, fluidized bed drying is an efficient and cost-effective alternative to the most frequently used freeze drying method. However, fluidized bed drying also poses damaging or lethal stress to bacteria. Therefore, investigation of impact of process variables and conditions on viability of starter cultures produced by fluidized bed drying is of major interest. Viability of bacteria is most frequently assessed by plate counting. While reproductive growth of cells can be characterized by the number of colony-forming units, it cannot provide the number of viable-but-nonculturable cells. However, in starter cultures, these cells still contribute to the fermentation during food production. In this study, flow cytometry was applied to assess viability of Lactobacillus plantarum starter cultures by membrane integrity analysis using SYBR®Green I and propidium iodide staining. The enumeration method established allowed for rapid, precise and sensitive determination of viable cell concentration, and was used to investigate effects of fluidized bed drying and storage on viability of L. plantarum. Drying caused substantial membrane damage on cells, most likely due to dehydration and oxidative stress. Nevertheless, high bacterial survival rates were obtained, and granulates contained in the average 2.7 × 10(9) viable cells/g. Furthermore, increased temperatures reduced viability of bacteria during storage. Differences in results of flow cytometry and plate counting suggested an occurrence of viable-but-nonculturable cells during storage. Overall, flow cytometric viability assessment is highly feasible for rapid routine in-process control in production of L. plantarum starter cultures, produced by fluidized bed drying.

Vitamin D receptor regulates intestinal proteins involved in cell proliferation, migration and stress response.

BACKGROUND: Genome-wide association studies found low plasma levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D and vitamin D receptor (VDR) polymorphisms associated with a higher prevalence of pathological changes in the intestine such as chronic inflammatory bowel diseases. METHODS: In this study, a proteomic approach was applied to understand the overall physiological importance of vitamin D in the small intestine, beyond its function in calcium and phosphate absorption. RESULTS: In total, 569 protein spots could be detected by two-dimensional-difference in-gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE), and 82 proteins were considered as differentially regulated in the intestinal mucosa of VDR-deficient mice compared to that of wildtype (WT) mice. Fourteen clearly detectable proteins were identified by MS/MS and further analyzed by western blot and/or real-time RT-PCR. The differentially expressed proteins are functionally involved in cell proliferation, cell adhesion and cell migration, stress response and lipid transport. Mice lacking VDR revealed higher levels of intestinal proteins associated with proliferation and migration such as the 37/67 kDa laminin receptor, collagen type VI (alpha 1 chain), keratin-19, tropomyosin-3, adseverin and higher levels of proteins involved in protein trafficking and stress response than WT mice. In contrast, proteins that are involved in transport of bile and fatty acids were down-regulated in small intestine of mice lacking VDR compared to WT mice. However, plasma and liver concentrations of cholesterol and triglycerides were not different between the two groups of mice. CONCLUSION: Collectively, these data imply VDR as an important factor for controlling cell proliferation, migration and stress response in the small intestine.