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The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effect of green tea polyphenols addition on physicochemical, microbiological and bioactive characteristics of yogurt.

Two incorporation methods of polyphenols were evaluated: direct addition or incorporated within protein particles of whey protein concentrate and gelatin. During yogurt’s shelf life, structure characteristics (water holding capacity, textural and rheological parameters), lactic acid bacteria (LAB) viability and polyphenols antioxidant activity were analyzed. Also, polyphenol bioaccesibility after in vitro digestion was evaluated.

Polyphenols addition (by the two methods used) did not affect the dynamics of the fermentation process, nor the LAB viability during storage. The color parameter a* for the yogurts with the highest polyphenol concentrations showed positive values (tending to red), but not visible to the naked eye. Because of the ability of polyphenols to interact with milk proteins, yogurts with polyphenols presented higher values in firmness and cohesiveness with respect to the control. Additionally, the incorporation of polyphenols in protein particles increased even more these parameters because of the higher protein content of these formulations. After simulated digestion, a high polyphenol bioaccesibility was observed, and the antioxidant activity was retained, which could be explained by the “protector” effect of the milk matrix.

Yogurt supplementation with green tea polyphenols is feasible for the development of functional food. However, the use of protein particles would not provide an extra benefit because milk proteins already act as protective molecules of polyphenols.

This study shows not only the physico-chemical implications of including polyphenols in yogurt but also their bioaccesibility after an in vitro digestion, revealing a suitable manner for delivery of antioxidants in a dairy product like yogurt.

Yoghurt is most popular and more acceptable throughout the world because of its general positive image among consumers because of its diverse nutritional and therapeutic properties and can be the most suitable probiotic carrier. Key factors for consumer’s inclination towards functional foods are increased awareness for healthy foods because of health deterioration resulting from busy lifestyles, growing healthcare cost and the aspiration for an improved quality life in later years. Yoghurt is still not consumed in certain parts of the world because of a lack of a cultural tradition of consuming yogurt and further people are not aware of the health benefits associated with yogurt consumption. In this study an attempt has been to project probiotic yoghurt as a functional food in the current era of self-care and complementary medicine.

Attempt has been made to review the literature on the biochemical activities of yoghurt cultures and their behavior in association with diverse probiotic cultures. Both review and research papers related to biochemical activities and functional properties of yoghurt cultures in association with probiotics and their health benefits published in diverse journals under Pub Med and Science Direct have been considered. Keywords used for data search included functional foods, yoghurt, probiotic, health benefits, etc.

Functional properties of yoghurt can be further enhanced with fortification of minerals and vitamins or inclusion of probiotic cultures. Diversity in biochemical behavior yoghurt cultures in association with different probiotic cultures has been reported. Conjugated application of probiotics with yoghurt cultures would result in a product with enhanced functional properties to extend health benefits.

Inclusion of probiotic cultures in yoghurt is suggested to extend the functional properties of normal yoghurt, thus providing necessary nutrients, improving health and preventing or reducing nutrition-related diseases. Regular intake of probiotic yoghurt is suggested for healthy lifestyles, as it will help in retaining their health and reduce the potentially long-term risk of disease. Food industries can have profit-driven business by projecting the probiotic yoghurt as a functional food.

Stirred yoghurt made using probiotic bacteria which are usually called Rayeb milk in the Arab countries is one of the most important functional fermented milk products. Tamr (dried dates) is commonly consumed in various parts of the world and is believed to represent a vital component of the diet in the Arab world. Tamr and honey characterize with high nutritional and healthful benefits. The purpose of this paper is to manufacture functional fermented dairy food (Rayeb milk) which has the nutritional and health effects of goat’s milk, Tamr, honey and probiotic.

Rayeb milk was made from goat’s milk fortified with Tamr (10 and 15 percent) with or without honey (1, 2, and 3 percent) using ABT culture (S. thermophiles, L. acidophilus, and Bifidobacterium). Samples of Rayeb milk were studied for their chemical composition, starter bacteria populations, and sensory attributes during 14 days of storage period.

Supplementation of goat’s milk with Tamr and honey decreased saturated fatty acids concentrations in Rayeb milk. The levels of carbohydrate, total solids, dietary fiber, ash, total protein (TP), unsaturated fatty acids, omega-3, omega-6, omega-9 fatty acids and antioxidants activity were higher in Rayeb milk contained Tamr and honey than those of control. Also, numbers of probiotic bacteria (L. acidophilus and Bifidobacterium) greatly increased in Rayeb milk supplemented with Tamr and honey. The recommended level of 107 cfu.g-1 of bifidobacteria as a probiotic was exceeded for these treatments. Adding Tamr and honey highly improved the sensory attributes of Rayeb milk.

Adding 10 percent Tamr with 3 percent honey or 15 percent Tamr with 1 or 2 percent honey to goat’s milk highly improved the nutritional, healthy and sensory properties of Rayeb milk.

Elderberry (Sambucus nigra) fruits are rich in bioactive components, specifically in anthocyanins. In this study, freeze-dried and powdered elderberry fruits were added to milk, yoghurt and kefir samples at ratios of 5, 10 and 15% (w/w) to fortify these dairy products at home scale, and final products were monitored to understand the behaviour of bioactive compounds.

The action of bioactive compounds was examined before and after in vitro gastrointestinal digestion by the analysis of total anthocyanin content, total phenolic content and antioxidant activity assays as well as the HPLC-PDA system on the first day of preparation. Moreover, the effect of three days of storage on individual phenolic compounds was evaluated.

Kefir samples exhibited the highest total anthocyanin content levels among prepared products (255±4-702±65 µmol cyanidin-3-glucoside eq/100 g), which is followed by yoghurt samples. Individual phenolics in samples prepared at the same concentrations behaved almost similarly with each other during gastric digestion phases (p > 0.05), whereas intestinal digestion phases caused significant differences, and phenolics in yoghurt samples exhibited higher values than others (p < 0.05). The stability of bioactive compounds in samples tended to decrease during storage; however, as observed during gastrointestinal digestion, yoghurt and kefir samples provided better matrices than milk to maintain the presence of bioactive compounds (p < 0.05).

Previous studies have indicated that elderberry fruits contain high levels of bioactive compounds, and these fruits have been used to fortify different food matrices. However, this research paper investigates the interaction between three selected dairy products and elderberry powder with each other for the first time.

The effect of pomegranate whole and inside peels before and after extraction of the tannic acid have been carried out in stimulated media and in gastrointestinal conditions

Adding pomegranate peels with and without tannins at different levels to bio-stirred yoghurt to study its effect as prebiotic, in addition to evaluating the effect on physiochemical, sensorial and rheological properties

The results reveal that pomegranate peels before and after removing tannins had no effect on the viability of a single strain of Lb. acidophilus in stimulated media, while the growth of mixed probiotic culture (Lb.acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum) was enhanced when pomegranate peels (whole and inside part) free from tannins were used. Tannin-free pomegranate peels enhanced the viability of probiotic culture under gastrointestinal conditions. In this study, all probiotic cultures were maintained counts around log 8 cfu /g in stirred bio-yoghurt supplements with pomegranate peels after 21days. Bio-yoghurt supplemented with pomegranate peels at 0.5% gained high scores for overall acceptability.

Pomegranate has been recognized as a good source of antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. Some researchers have utilized pomegranate peel in fermented milk, but most of the studies have found that tannins inhibit the bacterial culture. This study recommended that the supplementation of low-fat bio-yoghurt with tannin-free pomegranate peels enhanced the texture properties, viscosity of the product, as well as the viability of probiotic culture during shelf life. Therefore, the tannin-free pomegranate peel could be used as a prebiotic in functional fermented dairy products.

The main aim of this study is to investigate the whey protein profiles of different commercially available fermented milk drinks that might have been influenced by the growth of probiotics bacteria that have been added according to the claims made by the manufacturer.

The growth and the subsequent effect of probiotics on whey proteins were investigated through the peptide profiles of the hydrolysed whey protein. The profiles of whey proteins in skimmed milk and the four other probiotic fermented milk drinks were obtained by using the FPLC technique. Changes in whey proteins profiles in fermented milks were evaluated by comparing them with those of unfermented skimmed milk (control). The four samples were those of Yakult, Actimel, Muller and Tesco probiotic cranberry drinks.

This work has shown that all samples demonstrated a degree of protein hydrolysis. The high level of hydrolysis in “Yakult” and “Actimel” drink samples might have been due to the nature of the process, the length of time of fermentation or the high level of proteolytic activities of the micro‐organisms used. When compared with casein, it seems that whey proteins are more resistant to hydrolysis. The results also indicated that only traces of α‐lactalbumin were left in the whey sample from “Yakult” drink. There were noticeable reductions in the other three samples. Orotic acid, on the other hand, showed a decrease in their concentration in all whey protein samples when compared with the skimmed milk sample, except for the “Actimel” sample, which showed a noticeable increase.

This work has shown that there were distinct differences between the control sample (skimmed milk) and the four commercially available probiotic milk‐based fermented health drinks when a direct comparison was carried out between these samples.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate effects of simultaneous supplementation of milk protein concentrate (MPC) as texture modifier and microencapsulated Lactobacillus paracasei (L. paracasei) (entrapped in gellan–caseinate) on physico-chemical, sensorial and microbial characteristics of yogurt during storage time.

L. paracasei cells were encapsulated through unique pH triggered gelation technique using combination of sodium caseinate-gellan gum as protective shell material. MPC was also used to improve physico-chemical indices of probiotic yogurt at different levels (0–3 percent).

The results showed that yogurt samples containing encapsulated L. paracasei showed lower post-acidification and higher viability. Samples containing encapsulated L. paracasei showed less syneresis amount, due to possible hydration of shell material, also application of MPC could reduce this attribute during storage time. The numbers of probiotic bacteria were remained above the recommended therapeutic minimum throughout the samples.

The findings suggest a practical ingredient in probiotic dairy product. Simultaneous usage of this kind of encapsulation via MPC enhanced sensorial and physical properties of probiotic yogurt while of no reduction in viable counts survival.

This study revealed usage of microcapsules of L. paracasei prepared by the gelation of sodium caseinate-gellan gum could be a suitable manner for delivery of probiotics in fermented dairy products like yogurt.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of almond milk supplementation on the growth and viability of Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GR-1 (LGR-1) in yogurt samples over 6 h of fermentation and 30 days of refrigerated storage.

Four yogurt treatments (T1–T4) were inoculated with the probiotic strain L. rhamnosus GR-1 and fermented for 6 h at 37°C and then placed in refrigerated storage at 4°C for 30 days. Microbial and pH analysis of each sample was conducted every 2  h throughout the fermentation period and on Days 1, 15 and 30 of cold storage to determine the viability of L. rhamnosus GR-1.

All samples achieved mean microbial counts of at least 108 CFU/mL during fermentation and storage. During fermentation, mean microbial counts increased for all treatments; however, differences in mean microbial counts between treatments were not significant. During storage, the mean microbial count for T4 at 15 and 30  days was significantly higher (p = 0.031) than microbial counts on Day 1. However, mean microbial counts did not differ significantly across all storage time points for treatments 1, 2 and 3 (p > 0.05). These results suggest that the addition of almond milk, in combination with cow’s milk, is suitable for propagating and preserving the viability of L. rhamnosus GR-1 in yogurt.

There is a consumer shift towards plant-based products due to health, environmental and ethical reasons. Almond milk is a popular nondairy alternative that provides enhanced nutritional value to traditionally dairy-based probiotic yogurts. L. rhamnosus GR-1 is an especially beneficial probiotic for women as it colonizes the gut and vaginal epithelium, promoting urogenital health, including preventing the recurrence of urinary tract infections and bacterial vaginosis.

This paper aims to determine the effect of black garlic (BG) on visceral fat, oxidative stress and insulin resistance (IR) compared with metformin and vitamin E in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) rats.

A randomized post-test only design with control group was used in this study. Rats were given high-fat fructose diet enriched with 1.25% cholesterol and 0.5% cholic acid for eight weeks to induce NALFD condition. The administration of BG dose of 450 mg/200 gBW, 900 mg/200 gBW and 1350 mg/200 gBW with a comparative control of 45 mg/200 gBW of metformin and vitamin E of 9 IU/200 gBW were given for four weeks via oral gavage to reduce visceral fat, oxidative stress and improve IR. Statistical analyses were performed to examine differences between groups with one-way analysis of variance and nonparametrics test.

Rats given with three different doses of BG for four weeks did not reduce body weight from 244 ± 4.4 to 284 ± 4.6 g, 242 ± 2.5 to 272 ± 3.1 g and 240 ± 2.4 to 270 ± 3.6 g, respectively, but significantly reduced visceral fat (p =0.001) on BG groups with 3.7 ± 1.3, 2.7 ± 0.7 and 1.8 ± 0.6 g, respectively. BG improved oxidative stress (p =0.001) with malondialdehyde level 5.1 ± 0.2, 3.0 ± 0.06 and 2.3 ± 0.06 ng/mL, respectively, but did not better than vitamin E group 1 ± 0.03 ng/mL. Significant (p =0.001) improvement on insulin resistance with homeostatic model assessment IR in BG groups were 5.3 ± 0.1, 4.4 ± 0.1 and 4 ± 0.1, respectively, but not as good as metformin group 3.7 ± 0.1.

Based on the experiment, there are several limitations including small sample size, performed on animal models in a relatively short time, did not examine organosulfurs compound (OSC) content of BG specifically and OSC affects metabolism in NAFLD remains unclear and will require further investigation.

BG is a functional food made from heated fresh garlic owing to the Maillard reaction and the organosulfur compounds as antioxidants. The higher the dose of BG, the greater the improvement in visceral fat, oxidative stress and IR in model NAFLD rats.

NAFLD is a liver disorder caused by excessive fat and energy intake, the treatment strategies among others through diet modification.

In model NAFLD rats, BG administration improved NALFD markers but did not better rather than the metformin and vitamin E result.

Increased evidence for the health benefits of probiotics for health restoration coupled with the consumer's inclination towards a safe, natural and cost-effective substitute for drugs have led application of probiotics as a pharmaceutical agent and are rapidly moving in clinical usage. In this context, this article attempts to highlight the potential of probiotics as a pharmaceutical agent.

Endeavor has been made to explore the significance of probiotics for the modulation of gut ecology and their action. Potentiality of probiotics for their exploitation as a pharmaceutical agent has also been justified. Limitations of probiotic therapy and the various considerations for probiotic therapy have also been delineated.

Probiotic organisms influence the physiological and pathological process of the host by modifying the intestinal microbiota, thereby affecting human health. Beneficial effects of probiotics as a pharmaceutical agent seem to be strain and dose dependent and more efficacious with their early introduction. Combination of various probiotics proved to be more efficacious than single strain for exhibiting prophylactic activities.

Reviewed literature indicated that it is difficult to generalize for the beneficial effect of all probiotics for all types of diseases as efficacy of probiotics is strain-dependent and dose-dependent and its clinical application needs long-term investigations.

Clinical trials have displayed that probiotics may alleviate certain disorders or diseases in humans especially those related to gastro-intestinal tract.

Ingestion of fermented dairy products containing probiotic cultures may provide health benefits in certain clinical conditions such as antibiotic-associated diarrhoea, rotavirus-associated diarrhoea, inflammatory bowel disease, inflammatory bowel syndrome, allergenic diseases, cancer, Helicobacter pylori infection and lactose-intolerance. Application of probiotics as a pharmaceutical agent is recommended.