Indigenous dog lactic acid bacteria and their potential probiotic properties.

FERNANDEZ JURI M. G.,; MUZZOLÓN J.,; BARBERIS C.L.,; DALCERO A.M; MAGNOLI C.E,

Córdoba, Argentina

Congreso; VI Congreso Argentino de Microbiología General; 2009

Probiotic utilization is becoming increasingly popular in veterinary medicine. However, only a few probiotic products are commercially available for use in dogs in our market. Potential probiotic bacteria are classified, and generally regarded as safe as opposed to antibiotics, which have a number of recognized adverse effects. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are a broad group of Gram-positive, non-sporing rods and cocci, usually non-motile, catalase and oxidase negative that ferment carbohydrates forming lactic acid as the major end-product. A variety of microorganisms, typically lactic acid bacteria such as lactobacilli, bifidobacteria, and enterococci, have been evaluated as potential probiotics. According to this, the aims of this work were: 1) LAB isolation and identification from the intestine of healthy dogs, b) to analyze the capability of the strains of auto- aggregate and co- aggregate, c) tolerance of gastrointestinal enzyme and pH. The strains were isolated from feces of health dog in MRS agar (Mann Rogosa, Britania) and incubated in a micro-aerophilic chamber at 37°C for 72 h. Colonies were identified as LAB based on colonial morphology, Gram stain appearance, catalase, oxidase, indol and gelatinase reaction. Auto-aggregation and co- aggregation was performed on 6 selected strains using Enterobacter spp., S. aureus, E. coli and Klebsiella spp isolated from ill dogs as indicators strains. The resistence of the strains to pH, different digestives enzymes and bile salts were evaluated. Twenty-three strains of possible LAB were isolated. The 78% of the studied strains were Gram (+) cocci in pairs. The rest were long and thin Gram (+) non- sporing rods. Catalase, oxidase, indol, gelatinase and motility test were negative. The 60% of the strains maintained in glycerol were recovered. The total of the strains assayed showed auto-aggregation capacity. In the evaluation of tolerance at low pH levels the strains survived at pH 4 during 4 h at 37ºC. These results suggest that some of the isolated strains from feces of healthy dogs can be selected for forward studies that may, in the future, corroborate their efficiency as benefic microorganisms in order to supplement the dog diets to improve their quality of life.