BILE TOLERANCE, TAUROCHOLATE DECONJUGATION AND CHOLESTEROL REMOVAL BYLACTOBACILLUS-ACIDOPHILUS AND BIFIDOBACTERIUM SPP

Six strains of L. acidophilus and nine strains of different species fr om the genus Bifidobacterium differed in their tolerance to bile, deco njugation of sodium taurocholate and ability to lower cholesterol conc entration in the culture broth. For both L. acidophilus and bifidobact eria the rate of taurocholate deconjugation was highest at the exponen tial growth phase. The differences in cholesterol-lowering effect were not related to small variations in cell growth in the presence of tau rocholate, to cholic acid concentration in the supernatant or to the f inal pH of the culture broth. Removal of cholesterol by L. acidophilus cultures was not correlated with their tolerance to bile, but a weak negative correlation (r=-0.67) was observed between inhibition of Bifi dobacterium spp. cultures by bile and their cholesterol-lowering effec t.