ß-galactosidase activity in thermophilic lactobacilli. Their potential use as dietary adjunct

FERNÁNDEZ MURGA, M.L.; HEBERT, E. M.; SAVOY DE GIORI, G.; FONT DE VALDEZ, G.

MILCHWISSENSCHAFT-MILK SCIENCE INTERNATIONAL

A V A AGRARVERLAG

Año: 1997 vol. 52 p. 316 - 318

0026-3788

The effect of the culture conditions on ß-galactosidase (ß-gal) activity of eight strains of Lactobacillus helveticus and three strains of L. acidophilus was examined. In general L. helveticus strains showed higher values of ß-gal activity in milk at 37°C even though the highest enzyme levels were found for  L. helveticus CRL 1062 and CRL 1178 at 42°C. These results supports the potential use of thermophilic lactobacilli as a source of ß-galactosidase in fermented dairy products.