Jerusalem artichoke tubers for producing vegetable probiotic functional beverages with lactic acid bacteria

Abstract

Abstract The lactobacilli (L. plantarum, L. bulgaricus, L. salivarius, and L. rhamnosus) growth in water extracts of Jerusalem artichoke tubers (solvent ratio of 1:10) with solid particles was studied. The cultures were found to have great specific growth rates and high abundance (up to 10.3 log (CFU/ml)) for 6 hours. The adhesion of the cells to the tuber particles was revealed by a modified counting technique and confirmed by scanning electron microscopy. Lactobacilli were shown to be able to maintain the abundance required (not less than 7.5 log (CFU/ml)) at 2–6 °C for 28 days, which was presumably influenced by the adhesion of the cells to the tuber particles. The data obtained allowed claiming that water extracts of Jerusalem artichoke tubers are promising for production of probiotic functional beverages with lactic acid bacteria.