BILE TOLERANCE AND CHOLESTEROL REDUCTION BY ENTEROCOCCUS-FAECIUM, A CANDIDATE MICROORGANISM FOR THE USE AS A DIETARY ADJUNCT IN MILK-PRODUCTS

A study was carried out to test the ability of Enterococcus faecium to reduce cholesterol and to resist and deconjugate bile salts as well a s to determine the relationship amongst the studied traits. Most of th e tested strains proved to be resistant to 0.3% of bile salts. In gene ral, the deconjugative activities detected were higher than 40 % for t he 2 tested salts conjugated of cholic acid (sodium taurocholate and g lycocholate). A direct relationship between the bile-resistant and bil e-deconjugative phenotypes could not be established; the highest bile resistant strain did not show deconjugative activity, whereas the most bile sensitive strain demonstrated the better deconjugation. The capa city to reduce cholesterol from the media was a characteristic of each strain with values ranging from 12 to 56 %. This property was closely related to the deconjugative activity, but not to the bile resistant phenotype.