Comparison of probiotic potential, antimicrobial, antioxidant and technological characteristics of various Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strains isolated from fermented foods

Comparison of probiotic potential, antimicrobial, antioxidant and technological characteristics of various Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strains isolated from fermented foods | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Comparison of probiotic potential, antimicrobial, antioxidant and technological characteristics of various Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strains isolated from fermented foods Dina Shahrampour, Morteza Khomeiri This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6089267/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study aimed to investigate the subspecies diversity of 10 Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strains isolated from various fermented foods by RAPD-PCR analysis. Moreover, their technological features such as growth in different temperatures, NaCl concentration, and proteolytic properties were evaluated. The probiotic, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties of L. plantarum strains and their postbioptic characteristics compared with Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG as a commercial reference strain. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to group strains according to their responses to the following variables: microbial strains. RAPD-PCR results confirmed subspecies diversity of L. plantarum strains. In-vitro technological assays indicate similarity of ten strains. Their survival under exposure to low pH and bile salts were determined around 41.12–81.6% and 97.41-116.04%, respectively. The evaluation of aggregation, and hydrophobicity properties of cells of L. plantarum strains demonstrated similar cell surface characteristics. In addition to more survival under simulated gastrointestinal conditions, postbiotics derived from L. plantarum KMC45 isolated from jug cheese exhibited greater antioxidant and antibacterial activity than L. rhamnosus strain. Finally, L. plantarum KMC45 was isolated from jug cheese in PCA analysis was determined as the closest strain to the commercial probiotic strain and proposed as a new candidate for functional foods as probiotic starter culture. Probiotic Postbiotic Antioxidant Antimicrobial Fermented Food Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 1. Introduction There are several types of fermented food products around the world with various microbial flora because of different raw materials and fermentation conditions. The consumption of fermented foods has long been common in many parts of Iran as in other Asian countries. In general, fermented foods can be classified into five groups including dairy, meat, cereal, vegetable products and beverages (Rhee, Lee, & Lee, 2011 ). Fermented foods are produced by a large number of beneficial microorganisms, such as Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) that add as starter culture or constitute the natural flora of their raw material. LABs are gram-positive, catalase-negative and nonspore-forming bacteria that are generally recognized as safe (GRAS), and their major product is lactic acid. In contrast, fermented foods have been introduced as a suitable carrier for LAB with probiotic properties (Kumari, Angmo, Monika, & Bhalla, 2016 ). Three genera Lactobacillus, Enterococcus and Bifidobacterium are the main members of the probiotic microorganisms. A definition has been proposed for probiotics by FAO and WHO in 2002. Probiotics defined as living organisms conferring health benefits on the host when eaten in sufficient quantities (10 6 -10 9 CFU/g or ml). By maintaining the balance of the intestinal microbial community, probiotics prevent the growth of pathogenic bacteria, improve resistance to infection, promote good digestion and stimulate the immune system (Helland, Wicklund, & Narvhus, 2004 ). In contrast, the International Scientific Association of Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP) in 2021 suggested the following definition for postbiotics: " inactive microorganisms and/or their components and metabolites that provide a health benefit to the host" (Vinderola, Sanders, Cunningham, & Hill, 2024 ). Lactiplantibacillus plantarum is a well-known species of the Lactiplantibacillus genus found in many environments, from the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract to various fermented foods, because of its ability to cope with stress conditions. In addition, L. plantarum strains have good technological properties and health benefits due to the production of functional compounds when used as starter cultures or bioprotective agents. Moreover, the probiotic potential of many strains of L. plantarum has been reported in previous studies (Ahmad, Yap, Kofli, & Ghazali, 2018 ; Nwachukwu, George-Okafor, Ozoani, & Ojiagu, 2019 ; Son et al., 2017 ). Although some research have evaluated the antimicrobial activity (Tremonte et al., 2017 ), probiotic potential [6], or molecular typing of L. plantarum strains (Di Cagno et al., 2010 ; Siezen et al., 2010 ), there is still a high level of interest in studying the other properties of this adaptable and versatile species. Considering the different potential of indigenous strains, this study was built to investigate the multifunctional features (technological, probiotic, antimicrobial and antioxidant) of 10 strains of L. plantarum originating from different fermented foods. The genetic diversity of strains was also investigated by RAPD-PCR. Finally, the best candidate strain as a new probiotic that could be used in functional food production was determined by comparing it to commercial strains by principal component analysis (PCA). 2. Materials and methods 2.1. Microorganisms and culture conditions The 10 L. plantarum isolates were obtained from the culture collection of the Department of Food Science and Technology of Gorgan University, Iran (Table 1 ). The other microorganisms, such as L. plantarum (PTCC 1745), Escherichia coli (PTCC 1399), Listeria monocytogenes (PTCC 1298), Aspergillus niger (PTCC 5154) and Aspergillus flavus (PTCC 5004) were purchased from Iranian Research Organization for Science and Technology (IROST). Molecular identification of all L. plantarum strains was previously performed using partial 16S rRNA sequencing and the results were checked using the BLASTn procedure with available data in NCBI gene bank. Stock culture of all L. plantarum strains and indicator microorganisms containing 30% glycerol preserved at -20°C. The L. plantarum strains, pathogen bacteria and molds were grown in MRS broth (de Man, Rogosa and Sharpe, Liofilchem, Italy), Muller Hinton broth (Liofilchem, Italy), and YGC agar (Merck, Germany), respectively. Table 1 Lactobacillus plantarum strains originated from various fermented foods in this study. Code Strains Accession number in NCBI Source KAO17 Lactobacillus plantarum subsp. plantarum strain W2 KX 261527.1 Fermented olive KAO80 Lactobacillus plantarum strain CSCWL 7 − 3 KR 055065.1 Fermented olive KAO21 Lactobacillus plantarum partial 16S rRNA gene LT 593850.1 Fermented olive KAO41 Lactobacillus plantarum strain CSI 7 KM 513642.1 Fermented olive KAO64 Lactobacillus plantarum strain NBRC 15891 NR 112690.1 Fermented olive KMC45 Lactobacillus plantarum strain gp 57 KM 495883.1 Jug cheese KMC61 Lactobacillus plantarum strain gp 46 KM 495875.1 Jug cheese KMC37 Lactobacillus plantarum strain KLDS 610.1 EU 419598.1 Jug cheese KMM5 Lactobacillus plantarum strain gp106 KM 495894.1 Camel milk KES10 Lactobacillus plantarum strain CIP 103151 NR 104573.1 sourdough 2.2. DNA extraction The L. plantarum (PTCC 1745) was used as a reference strain for molecular analyses. Genomic DNA from all L. plantarum strains was extracted using a commercial DNA extraction kit (Bacterial DNA isolation kit, Dnazist Asia, Iran) according to the protocol of manufacture. The quantity and purity of DNA were assayed using Nano Drop ND-1000 spectrophotometer (Thermo Fisher Scientific, USA). 2.3. Genotypic characterization using RAPD-PCR analysis The RAPD-PCR reactions of each L. plantarum strain were performed using the following three oligonucleotide primers M13 (GAGGGTGGCGGTTCT), P7 (AGCAGCGTCG) and P4 (CCGCAGCGTT) in three separate amplifications in a Thermal Cycler (Di Cagno et al., 2008). The total reaction volume carried out in 20-µl included 10 µl Master Mix Red (Amplicon, Denmark), 2 µl primer at a concentration of 0.5 mM, 6 µl ddH2O, and 2 µl undiluted bacterial DNA. Water was used instead of the template DNA as a negative control in all runs. Subsequently, amplified DNA fragments were electrophoresed in 1.5% (w/v) agarose gel in TBE buffer for 2 h at a constant voltage of 100 V and were visualized under UV light (Kiagen, Iran). A 1 Kb plus DNA Ladder (Fermentas, USA) was included in each gel to estimate the molecular weight of the amplified DNA fragments. Only well-defined, reproducible amplified fragments were recorded by noting the presence or absence of DNA bands, resulting in binary 0/1 matrices. Ultimately, the three sets of RAPD-PCR profiles were assessed and integrated to generate a single dendrogram using NTSYS software (version 2.2). The peak matrices from both the Biolog System and RAPD-PCR were analyzed through clustering, and the three sets of RAPD-PCR profiles were combined to produce a unique dendrogram. 2.4. Technological characteristics of L. plantarum strains The survival of L. plantarum strains at different temperatures (5, 10, 37 and 45°C) and NaCl concentrations (2, 4, 6, 8 and 10%) were analyzed in MRS broth according to the method of Sanchez et al. ( 2000 )(Sanchez, Palop, & Ballesteros, 2000 ). The proteolytic potential of 10 L. plantarum strains was determined according to the method of Aarti et al. ( 2017 )(Aarti et al., 2017 ). Agar media containing peptone (0.5% w/v), beef extract (0.3% w/v), skim milk (1% w/v) and agar (1.8% w/v) were prepared in plates, and some wells were punched with a sterilized cork borer. Overnight cultures of each bacterial strain were poured into wells and plates were kept at 37°C for 48 h. Finally, a clear zone around the wells indicates the potential for protease production by L. plantarum strains. 2.5. probiotic potential of L. plantarum strains 2.5.1. Hemolytic activity The hemolytic activity of each strain was analyzed by streaking fresh culture on blood agar plates containing 5% (v/v) sheep blood. After incubation for 24 h at 37°C, the plates were examined for hemolytic reaction and marked as α-hemolysis (green-hued zones around colonies), β-hemolysis (clear zones around colonies) or 𝛾-hemolysis (no zones around colonies)(Angmo, Kumari, & Bhalla, 2016 ). 2.5.2. Antibiotic resistance The antibiotic resistance of bacterial strains against 10 common antibiotics was evaluated using the disc diffusion method as stated by Turchi et al. ( 2013 ) (Turchi, 2013). 2.5.3. Tolerance to low pH The tolerance of L. plantarum strains and L. rhamnosus GG (control strain) in low pH environments was tested by the method of Lee et al. ( 2016 )(Lee, 2016) with little modification. Briefly, 1 ml of an fresh culture of L. plantarum strains was inoculated in 9 ml sterile MRS broth tubes ( ̴ 10 8 cfu/ml ), where the pH was adjusted to 2 or 3 by 1M HCL. All tubes were incubated at 37°C for 3 h to reflect the time spent in the stomach with food. The resistance of bacterial cells was evaluated at 0 and 3 h using the standard plate counting method on MRS agar and expressed as the log of colony-forming units per ml (Log CFU/ml). Survival percentage was estimated using the following Eq. (1): % Survival = final counts (CFU/ml)/ initial counts (CFU/ml) ×100 (1) 2.5.4. Tolerance to bile salts The bile salts tolerance was determined by inoculating 1 ml of an fresh culture of L . plantarum strains or L. rhamnosus GG in 9 ml sterile MRS broth containing 0.3% (w/v) Oxgall Bile and incubating for 4 h at 37°C. Bacterial cells were counted at 0 h and 4 h on the MRS agar plate and resistance were evaluated in terms of viable colony counts per ml (CFU/ml) (Maragkoudakis, 2006). The survival percentage was calculated as follows: % survival = final counts (CFU/ml)/ initial counts (CFU/ml) ×100 (2) 2.5.5. Antimicrobial activity The spot-on-the-lawn method was performed as stated by Termonte et al. (2017)(Tremonte et al., 2017 ). The antibacterial and antifungal effects of L. plantarum strains against E. coli, L. monocytogenes , A. niger and A. flavus were detected by observation of inhibition zones around each spot after 24 h at 37°C. 2.5.6. Aggregation properties The bacterial cell’s ability to aggregate with same or different cells is referred to as auto-aggregation and co-aggregation, respectively. In this study, the aggregation properties of all L. plantarum strains and L. rhamnosus GG were analyzed according to Collado et al. ( 2008 )(Collado, 2008) method with slight modifications. The bacterial cell suspensions were provided in PBS buffer with optical density 0.25 ± 0.05 at 600 nm (about 10 8 CFU/ml). For the auto-aggregation experiment, 4 ml of each strain’s suspension was vortexed in a sterile tube for 10s. For the co-aggregation test, equal volumes (2 ml) of each L. plantarum strains and pathogen bacteria were mixed and kept at ambient temperature for 24 h. The optical density of samples at 600 nm by spectrophotometer (PG-Instrument-LTD, USA) was monitored at 0 h and 24 h, and the aggregation percentage was estimated by following formula (3): Auto-aggregation (%)= [1- A t /A 0 ]×100 (3) Where: A t = the absorbance at time t, A 0 = the absorbance at t = 0. Co-aggregation= [(A L + A pat ) / 2] – A mix / [(A L + A pat ) / 2] × 100 (4) Where: A L = absorbance of Lactobacillus strain, A pat = absorbance of bacterial pathogens, A mix = absorbance of the mixture of Lactobacillus strain with one of the bacterial pathogens. 2.5.7. Cell surface hydrophobicity The hydrophobicity of microbial cells was evaluated according to adhesion to hydrocarbons. In this study, decan and ethyl-acetate were used as nonpolar and monopolar basic solvents, respectively. Overnight cultures of all L. plantarum strains and L. rhamnosus GG were centrifuged at 4000 g for 15 min, and the pellet was washed and suspended in PBS buffer (pH = 7) to cell density 10 8 CFU/ml. The optical density of the suspension was measured at 580 nm and recorded as A0. Next, 2 ml of the bacterial cell suspension was combined with an equal volume of solvent and vortexed vigorously for 2 minutes. The mixture was then incubated at room temperature for 20 minutes to allow complete separation of the organic and aqueous phases. The absorbance of the top layer (aqueous phase) was measured at 580 nm and recorded as A1 [18]. The percentage of cell surface hydrophobicity was calculated using the following Eq. (5): % Hydrophobicity = (1 – A 1 /A 0 ) × 100 (5) 2.6. Antioxidant activity The antioxidant activity of L. plantarum strains and L. rhamnosus GG cells and cell-free supernatant as postbiotic were evaluated by the scavenging of DPPH (2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) free radical method. Briefly, 2 ml of the bacterial cell suspension (10 8 Cfu/ml) and 0.1 ml of postbiotic were added to 1 and 3.9 ml of DPPH solution (0.05 mM), respectively. The mixture of DPPH solution and water was used as a control. Absorption of all samples was determined at 517 nm, the DPPH radical scavenging capacity was estimated as follows (Aarti et al., 2017 ): DPPH scavenging activity (%) = [A control - A sample / A control ] ×100 (6) 2.7. Statistical analysis The results are presented as the average values of three replicates, expressed as means ± SD. Differences between the average treatment values were analyzed using Duncan's test with SPSS software (Version 23, SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL). Significant differences between treatments were considered when p < 0.05. Principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted using XLSTAT software (USA, 2018) to compare different L. plantarum strains with the probiotic reference strain ( Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG) to identify the indigenous probiotic L. plantarum isolate. 3. Results and discussion 3.1. RAPD-PCR analysis First, the L. plantarum species isolated from different fermented foods were identified based on the nucleotide sequence data of 16S rRNA genes. The genomic diversity of L. plantarum isolates studied by RAPD-PCR analysis using three primers (M13, P4, and P7) with randomly chosen sequences. The dendrogram obtained from the combined RAPD-PCR patterns of the L. plantarum isolates are shown in Fig. 1 Cluster analysis was based on the Jaccard similarity coefficient and complete method, and two main clusters (A and B) were obtained. Based on the original habitat, all the L. plantarum isolates from jug cheese, camel milk and sourdough and 2 isolates from fermented olives were included in cluster A. On the other hand, cluster B only included 3 isolates from fermented olives. The KAO64 and KAO17 strains that were isolated from fermented olive were the most similar and were placed in short distance from each other. These results indicated polymorphism among L. plantarum strains isolated from different fermented foods. It has been reported that the selection of suitable bacteria for probiotic or starter culture is strain-dependent (Oguntoyinbo & Narbad, 2012 ). The use of RAPD-PCR for Lactobacillus strain differentiation was documented by Di Cagno et al., ( 2010 ) and Oguntoyinbo and Narbad (2015) (Di Cagno et al., 2010 ; Oguntoyinbo & Narbad, 2012 ). 3.2. Technological characterization of L. plantarum strains The results presented in Table 2 indicate that all L. plantarum strains grew well at 15°C and 37°C instead of 45°C. The lowest growth of strains was observed at 4°C. On the other hand, the growth of these strains decreased with increasing NaCl concentration in the medium such that no growth was observed at 10% NaCl concentration. Unlike the other strains, KMM5 isolated from Camel milk did not grow in the presence of 8% NaCl in broth medium. The salt tolerance of Lactobacillus spp. originating from fermented foods and beverages have been reported in other studies (Karasu, Şimşek, & Çon, 2010 ; Kumari et al., 2016 ). Generally, the maximum NaCl concentration tolerance reported for L. plantarum strains ranges from 3–6% (Fu et al., 2022 ; Sining Li, Tang, Mo, Li, & Chen, 2023 ), which significantly limited its effective fermentation capabilities. To develop LAB starters with fermentation potential in a salt-stressed environment, it is essential to identify strains that possess salt resistance traits. The concentrations of 6% and 8% NaCl for processing of fermented vegetables are usually used (Buckenhüskes, 1993 ). Therefore, in this study, nine L. plantarum strains that could grow under such fermentation conditions were introduced. In another study, Han et al. (2024) (Han et al., 2025 ) obtained sixteen L. plantarum salt-tolerant strains that exhibited excellent genetic stability in stress conditions. Also, they stated the importance of bacterial cell wall length and cell morphology in the enhancement of salt tolerance. Clear zones with diameters on skim milk agar represent the various proteolytic activity of all L. plantarum strains. The proteolytic activity was strain-dependent, and the highest and lowest proteolysis was observed in strains isolated from camel milk (KMM5), and fermented olives (KAO21), respectively (Fig. 2 ). The L. plantarum strains have been identified as bacteria with favorable proteolytic activity in many kinds of research fields (Tafti, Peighambardoust, & Hejazi, 2013 ; Toledano, Jordano, López, & Medina, 2011 ). In another study, the casein proteolysis in fermented milk during cold storage in present of Streptococcus thermophilus in co-culture with Lactobacillus plantarum or Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. Lactis was evaluated. The stronger degradation of casein occurred in milk containing co-culture of Streptococcus thermophilus and L. plantarum (Sining Li, Tang, He, Hu, & Zheng, 2019 ). The most important application of LABs is their use as a starter culture in fermented dairy products, because of their metabolic activity and the formation of texture and flavor by the proteolysis of casein (Savijoki, Ingmer, & Varmanen, 2006 ). Table 2 Effect of temperature and NaCl concentration on growth of various L. plantarum strains isolated from different fermented foods. L. plantarum strains Temperature (°C) NaCl concentration (%) 4 15 37 45 2 4 6 8 10 KAO17 + * +++ +++ ++ +++ +++ ++ + - KAO80 + +++ +++ ++ +++ +++ ++ + - KAO21 + +++ +++ + +++ +++ ++ + - KAO41 + +++ +++ + +++ +++ ++ + - KAO64 + +++ +++ ++ +++ +++ ++ + - KMC45 + +++ +++ ++ +++ +++ ++ + - KMC61 + +++ +++ + +++ +++ ++ + - KMC37 + +++ +++ ++ +++ +++ ++ + - KMM5 + +++ +++ ++ +++ +++ ++ - - KES10 + +++ +++ ++ +++ +++ ++ + - * + low growth, ++ medium growth, +++ high growth, - no growth 3.3. Probiotic characterization of L. plantarum strains 3.3.1. Hemolytic activity Safety criteria, such as lack of hemolytic activity and antibiotic resistance, are considered when selecting probiotics (Joint, 2002 ). In this study, no hemolysis activity was observed for L. plantarum strains and L. rhamnosus GG. Similar observations for Lactobacillus spp. isolated from another fermented food were reported by Angmo et al. ( 2016 ) and Argyri et al.(2013) (Angmo et al., 2016 ; Argyri, 2013). 3.3.2. Antibiotic resistance As exhibited in Table 3 , all L. plantarum strains derived from foods exhibited similar resistance to vancomycin as a glycopeptide antibiotic, unlike gentamicin. Sensitivity to Streptomycin and Kanamycin was only observed in KAO64 and KMM5. The MAR index had the lowest values (0.1) for these two strains and the highest values for L. rhamnosus GG as a probiotic reference strain (0.6). In addition to vancomycin, streptomycin, and kanamycin, L. rhamnosus GG showed resistance to Ampicillin, Penicillin and Clindamycin. According to previous studies, resistance to aminoglycoside antibiotics such as gentamicin, streptomycin and kanamycin in the Lactobacillus genus is intrinsic (Argyri, 2013; Danielsen & Wind, 2003 ). On the other hand, lactobacilli vancomycin-resistant genes are chromosomal encoded. Accordingly, there is no concern about the transfer of these genes between probiotics and pathogenic bacteria (Morrow, Gogineni, & Malesker, 2012 ). Table 3 Antibiotic resistance of various L.plantarum strains and L. rhamnosus GG. Lactobacillus strains Antibiotics MAR index value P10 * GM10 AM10 C30 V30 K30 S10 TE30 E15 CC20 KAO17 S ** S S S R R R S S S 0.3 KAO80 S R S S R R R S S S 0.4 KAO21 S R S S R R R S S S 0.4 KAO41 S R S S R R R S S S 0.4 KAO64 S S S S R S S S S S 0.1 KMC45 S R S S R R R S S S 0.4 KMC61 S S S S R R R S S S 0.3 KMC37 S S S S R R R S S S 0.3 KMM5 S S S S R S S S S S 0.1 KES10 S S S S R R R S S S 0.3 LGG *** R S R S R R R S S R 0.6 *P, Penicillin (10 mg); GM, Gentamicin (10 mg); AM, Ampicillin (10 mg); C30, Chloramphenicol (30 mg); V30, Vancomycin (30 mg); K30, Kanamycin (30 mg); S10, Streptomycin (10 mg); TE30, Tetracycline (30 mg); E15, Erythromycin (15 mg); CC20, Clindamycin (20 mg). **“R”: Resistance; “S”: Sensitive.***LGG: L. rhamnosus GG 3.3.3. Acid Tolerance The viability potential of L. plantarum strains against acidic conditions is an important property to consider when selecting probiotic organisms. As shown in Table 4 , all tested strains were alive when exposed to low pH and their survival in pH = 2 was less than pH = 3. The differences observed in bacterial tolerance under acidic conditions were due to differences in strains and their isolation sources. The highest resistance to low pH was detected in L. plantarum KMC45 and L. rhamnosus GG. The viable count reduction of L. plantarum KMC45 was only 1.64 log after 3 h of exposure to pH = 2 in contrast with the other strains (2.5–4.18 log CFU/ml). Some in vitro studies confirmed that lactobacillus viability was affected by pH value and more reduction observed at pH = 2–4 compare with pH = 7 (Turchi, 2013). Most strains of the L. plantarum group isolated from sourdough compared with other LABs exhibited highly tolerant of acid, alkaline and osmotic stress in study of Parente et al. ( 2010 )(Karasu et al., 2010 ; Parente et al., 2010 ). Studies confirmed the significant withstanding acid stress of many strains of L. plantarum , which is critical for their survival in fermented foods and their role as probiotics. This potential is related to various physiological and biochemical mechanisms, although specific mechanisms can vary among different strains (Karasu et al., 2010 ). In fact, L. plantarum has a relatively large genome of 3.30 Mbp, coding for 3009 proteins, and reveals unusually diverse metabolic abilities compared to other LABs. Therefore, species exhibit significant genomic diversity, with much of it concentrated in specific regions of the chromosome that are closely linked to adaptations for different lifestyles (Garcia-Gonzalez, Bottacini, Van Sinderen, Gahan, & Corsetti, 2022 ; Siezen & van Hylckama Vlieg, 2011). 3.3.4. Bile salts Tolerance Bile acids are produced from cholesterol in the liver and then released from the gallbladder into the duodenum in a conjugated form, resulting in their concentration in the intestine ranging from 0.3–0.5%. The antimicrobial activity of bile salts against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria has been demonstrated, even at low concentrations. The results of this study indicate that all L. plantarum strains have a high level of tolerance to bile salts around > 97%, which is greater than that of the reference strain L. rhamnosus GG (Table 4 ). The L. plantarum KMM5 survival rates were detected for KMC61 and KMC37 in present of bile salt. These results showed that all L. plantarum strains in this study were more resistant to bile salt than other known probiotic Lactobacillus species in other research (Kumari et al., 2016 ; Lee, 2016; Maragkoudakis, 2006). In a similar study, Lee et al. ( 2016 ) (Lee, 2016)determined the survival rates of L. plantarum and Leu. Mesenteroides that isolated from kimchi in the presence of 0.3% bile salts as 58.53% and 40.31%, respectively. In a recent study, L. plantarum BG24 strain isolated from boza showed great tolerance and could grow in the presence of 0.5-2% bile salt in medium (Gökmen et al., 2024 ). The bile salt tolerance of many LABs is related to their bile salt hydrolase activity, which can reduce toxic effects. Bile salt tolerance in L. plantarum strains varies due to specific genes which are responsible for bile salt hydrolase activity (Wang et al., 2021 ). Moreover, food components can protect and improve the bile salt resistance of bacteria during digestion (Du Toit et al., 1998 ). Table 4 Acid and bile tolerance of various L. plantarum strains and L. rhamnosus GG. Lactobacillus strains TVC * (Log CFU/ml) in pH = 2 TVC (Log CFU/ml) in pH = 3 TVC (Log CFU/ml) in Bile salts (0.3%) t = 0 h t = 3 h survival (%) t = 0 h t = 3 h Survival (%) t = 0 h t = 4 h survival (%) KAO17 8.22 ± 0.39 5.03 ± 0.46 61.19 7.93 ± 0.9 7.47 ± 0.53 94.19 8.25 ± 0.13 8.74 ± 0.13 105.9 KAO80 7.32 ± 0.28 4.39 ± 0.15 59.97 7.85 ± 1.1 8.38 ± 0.01 106.7 8 ± 0.29 8.5 ± 0.11 106.25 KAO21 7.47 ± 0.21 4.38 ± 0.05 58.63 8.67 ± 0.6 8.11 ± 0.07 93.54 8.2 ± 0.05 8.57 ± 0.2 104.51 KAO41 8.57 ± 0.13 5.04 ± 0.24 58.8 8.01 ± 0.1 7.22 ± 0.87 90.13 8.1 ± 0.17 8.65 ± 0.27 106.79 KAO64 7.27 ± 0.48 4.69 ± 0.11 64.51 8.2 ± 0.63 7.07 ± 0.63 86.21 8.41 ± 0.18 8.66 ± 0.28 102.97 KMC45 7.99 ± 0.29 6.52 ± 0.14 81.60 8.26 ± 0.1 9.9 ± 0.48 119.8 7.75 ± 0.24 8.44 ± 0.34 108.9 KMC61 7.83 ± 1.09 4.31 ± 0.99 55.04 8.21 ± 0.1 8.05 ± 0.03 98.06 8.5 ± 0.09 8.28 ± 0.11 97.41 KMC37 7.19 ± 0.21 5.04 ± 0.25 70.09 8.45 ± 0.2 9.36 ± 0.4 110.7 8.49 ± 0.12 8.29 ± 0.05 97.64 KMM5 7.1 ± 0.29 2.92 ± 0.32 41.12 8.59 ± 0.5 8.31 ± 0.33 96.74 7.23 ± 0.08 8.39 ± 0.25 116.04 KES10 7.67 ± 0.17 4.04 ± 0.26 52.67 8.06 ± 0.1 7.74 ± 0.28 96.03 8.2 ± 0.15 8.36 ± 0.08 101.95 LGG * 7.18 ± 0.21 5.84 ± 0.14 81.33 7.25 ± 0.2 7.55 ± 0.15 104.13 7.34 ± 0.05 7.76 ± 0.11 105.72 The results are reported as the average values of three replicates and are represented by means ± SD. *LGG: Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG; TVC: Total viable Counts 3.3.5. Antimicrobial activity The antibacterial potential of L. plantarum strains against undesirable microorganisms was determined using the spot-on-the-lawn test (Fig. 3 (a)). The studied strains demonstrated strong antibacterial properties, and the inhibition zones varied between 25 and 60 mm. The E. coli as a gram-negative bacterium was more sensitive than L. monocytogenes as a gram-positive bacterium to inhibitory compounds of L. plantarum strains. As a general consideration, the antimicrobial potential of LAB is strain-dependent, which has been confirmed by other authors (Ołdak, Zielińska, Rzepkowska, & Kołożyn-Krajewska, 2017 ; Tremonte et al., 2017 ). The L. rhamnosus GG had the highest antibacterial activity compared with L. plantarum strains. Among the tested L. plantarum strains, KAO80 and KAO41 strains had the largest diameters of inhibition zones against E. coli and L. monocytogenes , respectively. As shown in Fig. 4 , the highest antibacterial activity of postbiotic components against gram positive and gram-negative bacterial pathogens belonged to KMC45 strain. In general, no considerable differences were observed between the reference strain and L. plantarum strains in this regard, which is probably related to the similarity of the antimicrobial compounds that produced during growth in MRS medium under constant conditions. The antimicrobial activity of LAB is due to the production of different metabolites such as organic acids (lactic and acetic acid, etc) hydrogen peroxide, ethanol, diacetyl, acetaldehyde, acetone, carbon dioxide, reuterin, reutericyclin and bacteriocins (Šušković et al., 2010 ). The antifungal activity of L. plantarum strains is shown in Fig. 3 (b). According to the inhibition zone around of L. plantarum spots, A. niger (12.33–20.67 mm) was more resistant than A. flavus (14.67–26.5 mm). Most of the tested L. plantarum strains exhibited moderate inhibition against both molds, and the inhibition halo diameter were measured > 15 mm. Moreover, the antifungal activity of these 10 L. plantarum strains against A. flavus was more than L. plantarum K35 in similar study of Sangmanee., & Hongpattarakere (2014)(Sangmanee & Hongpattarakere, 2014 ). In addition, weak antifungal potential reported for some L. plantarum isolates in previous research, for example, only 10 strains of 19 L. plantarum strains isolated from Lighvan cheese demonstrated antifungal activity against Penicillium expansum (Nayyeri et al., 2017 ). Several studies also have confirmed a broad spectrum of antifungal activity of L. plantarum strains against various food spoilage fungi A. niger , A. flavus , Fusarium culmorum , Penicillium roqueforti , P. expansum, P. chrysogenum , and Cladosporium spp (Russo et al., 2017 ; Yang & Chang, 2010 ). The different results observed in several studies are probably due to the differences in microbial strains, isolation environment, and experimental conditions. The isolation environment and stressful conditions can affect the ability of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains to produce antimicrobial metabolites. In fact, exposure to severe stressful conditions such as Jug cheese and fermented olive in this study could improve the antimicrobial capabilities of isolated L. plantarum strains compared to other isolates. 3.3.6. Aggregation properties The colonization ability of L. plantarum strains was determined via auto-aggregation and co-aggregation studies. The significant variability in auto-aggregation capacity (p < 0.05) ranging from KES10 (7.13%) to KMC45 (58.78%) is presented in Table 5 . The probiotic reference strain (LGG) had the highest auto-aggregation property. However, no significant difference was obtained among 50% of the strains in terms of this feature (p > 0.05). In similar research higher auto- aggregation was observed for three L. plantarum origined from kimchi with no significant of difference with L. rhamnosus GG (Jung et al., 2019 ). A wide range of differences in co-aggregation according to bacterial pathogens were observed for L. plantarum strains. The highest co-aggregation interactions with L. monocytogenes and E. coli were observed for the KES10 and KAO64 strains, respectively. These results revealed a higher co-aggregation potential of some L. plantarum strains compared to L. rhamnosus . In addition, the results of co-aggregation properties of some studied L. plantarum strains in the presence of pathogenic bacteria such as E. coli were higher than similar strains reported in the study of Tafangsazan et al. (2013) (Tofangsazan, Shahidi, Mortazavi, Milani, & Eshaghi, 2013 ) and were like strains reported in the study of Ramos et al. ( 2013 )(Ramos, 2013). The lactobacillus, which are found in the human digestive system and referred to as probiotics, support host's health by prevention pathogenic colonization on the intestinal surface. In addition, the auto-aggregation of probiotics and their binding with intestinal cells is important for their barrier activity. The cell surface components of Lactobacillus, such as proteins, fatty acids, and polysaccharides, are involved in cell aggregation and depend on strain type and environmental conditions (Collado, 2008). To understand the effect of environmental factors on aggregation ability, Polak-Berecka et al. ( 2014 )(Polak-Berecka, 2014) demonstrated that the presence of simple sugars, lithium chloride, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and enzymatic treatment of the cell wall with proteinase K enzyme significantly reduced the aggregation properties of L. rhamnosus strains by changing the structure of proteins and polysaccharides and other molecules on the cell surface. 3.3.7. Cell surface hydrophobicity The L. plantarum strains indicated various hydrophobicity levels. According to Table 5 , the tendency of L. plantarum strains to adhere to Decan as a non-polar solvent compared with Ethyl-acetate as a monopolar basic solvent demonstrated the high capability of cell surface hydrophobicity of these bacteria. The highest hydrophobicity measured for KES10, KAO41, and KMC37 by adhesion to Decan was more than 80%. However, there were no significant differences in the hydrophobicity of the majority of L. plantarum strains and L. rhamnosus GG (p > 0.05). According to Taheur et al. ( 2016 ) (Taheur, 2016) report, 70% of L. plantarum strains in the present study could be classified in the group with high surface hydrophobicity, which is more than other probiotic strains studied elsewhere (Ramos, 2013; Rocha-Ramírez, 2021). In fact, the hydrophobicity capacity of Lactobacillus spp isolates is closely related to their adhesion ability to intestinal epithelial cells (Karasu et al., 2010 ). It is possible that environmental conditions play a major role in the expression of surface proteins among strains of a species and that considerable differences exist in the cell surface hydrophobicity of lactobacillus isolates (Ramiah, Van Reenen, & Dicks, 2007 ). Table 5 The auto-aggregation, co-aggregation and hydrophobicity properties of L. plantarum strains and L. rhamnosus GG . Lactobacillus strains Auto-aggregation (%) Co-aggregation (%) Adhesion (%) E. coli L . monocytogenes Ethyl-acetate Decan KAO17 1.12 e* ±10.46 1.03 d ±21.83 1.16 de ±17.3 d* 1.05 ± 15.47 2.53 ab ± 74.33 KAO80 2.3 c ±36.56 0.47 h ±5.99 0.76 d ±18.91 2.47 d ± 12.77 2.38 a ±80.49 KAO21 2.1 d ±24.34 1.36 f ±14.21 1.67 g ±7.24 1.27 d ± 18.4 8.67 ab ± 72.74 KAO41 2.3 b ±44.47 0.93 b ±31.76 0.77 b ±32.69 1.53 b ± 43.53 3.56 a ±85.94 KAO64 0.93 e ±11.1 1.33 a ±44.27 1.79 g ±9.27 1.37 e ±9.52 5.31 c ± 42.33 KMC45 2.12 a ±58.78 0.41 c ±28.95 0.53 f ±12.37 2.05 c ± 34.68 7.54 b ±59.92 KMC61 d 1.35 ± 21.54 1.17 b ±31.35 0.68 c ±25 2.49 d ± 17.09 8.78 c ±41.75 KMC37 1.69 e ±9.96 1.17 g ±9.37 0.65 f ±12.77 1.48 b ± 46.14 7.31 a ±84.87 KMM5 1.7 e ±10.45 1.09 e ±18.46 1.49 e ±15.4 2.28 a ± 52.94 1.58 ab ± 71.72 KES10 7.13 ± 1.49 e 0.78 d ±23.01 0.81 a ±47.78 2.26 c ± 33.73 3.72 a ±86.07 LGG ** 60.02 ± 0.2 a 14.81 ± 1.02 f 25.9 ± 0.52 c 55.82 ± 0.79 a 75.22 ± 2.1 ab *The results are reported as the average values of three replicates and are represented by means ± SD. Different letter in each column indicate significantly different values (p < 0.05) according to Duncan’s post hoc means comparison test. **LGG: Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG 3.4. Antioxidant activity The DPPH free radical scavenging potential of the bacterial cell suspensions and their cell free supernatant (postbiotic) which is attributed to their hydrogen-donating capacity. The highest and lowest antioxidant activity of cell suspensions were observed for KAO64 (65.66%) and KMC37 (36.6%) strains, respectively (Fig. 5 (a)). Moreover, there was no significant difference between 70% of our tested strains and L. rhamnosus GG, probably because of the similarity of cell surface compounds. In similar, the various L. plantarum strains of Chinese fermented foods exhibited different DPPH scavenging effects ranging from 10 to 45% that was lower than that observed in this study (Shengyu Li et al., 2012 ). According to Li et al. ( 2012 ), the DPPH radical-scavenging ability depends on the cell surface components (proteins, polysaccharides and ferulic acid), whereas the antioxidant activity of L. plantarum C88 cells decreased significantly following enzymatic and chemical treatments (Shengyu Li et al., 2012 ). On the other hand, the antioxidant activity of postbiotics of L. plantarum strains could be dependent on their isolated food origin (Fig. 5 (b)). The Jug cheese isolates (KMC37, KMC45, and KMC61) postbiotic had the highest scavenging activity. In previous studies, the DPPH scavenging properties of L. plantarum strains postbiotic that were isolated from Airag (35.8%) and Kimchi (34- 40.97%) fermented foods, were lower than our study (Jung et al., 2019 ; Son et al., 2017 ; Uugantsetseg & Batjargal, 2014 ). The cells (59.82%) and postbiotics (99.02%) of L. plantarum ZJ316 isolated from healthy infant feces indicated differing DPPH scavenging potential with no significant difference with L. rhamnosus GG (Wu et al., 2023 ). These findings revealed that the antioxidant characteristics of LAB are strain-specific and could be related to the isolation environment. Arati et al (2017) reported that the antioxidant activity of postbiotics may result from proteinaceous compounds acting as efficient second metabolites(Aarti et al., 2017 ). In this respect, the ability to prevent or treat a variety of diseases like cardiovascular problems, diabetes, and ulcers of the gastrointestinal tract could be potentially beneficial in promoting host health due to the antioxidant effect of LAB bacteria (Ding et al., 2017 ). 4.4. Selection a new probiotic starter culture by principal component analysis (PCA) Finally, the most promising indigenous L. plantarum isolate was selected through the principal component analysis (PCA). The analysis of PCA revealed that four principal components explained 70.18% of the total variation, while PC1 and PC2 accounted for 27.99% and 18.52%, respectively (Fig. 6 ). Three major groups (A, B and C) can be identified because of the variables in PCA's factorial space. The L. plantarum KMC45 was the closest to the probiotic reference strain (LGG) located in group B. According to this finding, L. plantarum KMC45 has the best potential as a new probiotic starter culture. In several previous studies, multivariate analysis methods such as cluster analysis and principal component analysis (PCA) have been applied to select suitable microbial strains as starter cultures. Cluster analysis is a tool in molecular biology that specifically refers to genotypes and subspecies, whereas PCA focuses on grouping strains based on their response to variables to differentiate microbial strains (Ciuffreda et al., 2014 ). For instance, Ciuffreda et al. ( 2014 ) evaluated the probiotic and technological properties of eight Bifidobacterium strains isolated from human feces. These researchers employed PCA as a statistical method to select the most suitable strain with desirable characteristics (Ciuffreda et al., 2014 ). In another study, Kumari et al. ( 2016 ) compared probiotic characteristics of 51 lactic acid bacteria orgined from Indian fermented foods with commercial probiotic strains such as Lactobacillus casei and L. rhamnosus using PCA. As a result, they introduced L. brevis PLA2 as a novel indigenous probiotic starter culture (Kumari et al., 2016 ). Furthermore, Sharma et al. ( 2017 ) applied both cluster analysis and PCA to assess the similarity of 75 lactic acid bacteria isolated from dairy products to the reference probiotic strain L. rhamnosus GG. According to methods, Lactobacillus paracasei and Lactobacillus gastricus exhibited the highest similarity to the reference strain (Sharma, Mahajan, Attri, & Goel, 2017 ). 4. Conclusion The present study confirmed the diversity of 10 L. plantarum originating from various fermented foods (olive, jug cheese, camel milk, sourdough) in RAPD-PCR analysis. In contrast to technological characteristics, L. plantarum strains revealed high variation in their probiotic properties. This study demonstrated the greater capacity of one L. plantarum isolate as a promising candidate for probiotic applications by principal component analysis (PCA). The L. plantarum KMC45 was introduced as a new probiotic starter culture with multifunctional chrematistics that could be used in functional foods due to its high tolerance to gastrointestinal conditions in comparison to the reference commercial strain. Moreover, the selected Lactobacillus cell was similar to the commercial strain in terms of antimicrobial, aggregation, and antioxidant properties. The postbiotic derived from L. plantarum KMC45 exhibited more antioxidant and antibacterial activity compared to L. rhamnosus strain and others studied L. plantarum isolates. Therefore, further in vivo studies are suggested to elucidate the potential health benefits of this novel probiotic starter for hosts and efficiency as a starter culture in the food industry. Declarations Acknowledgment: The authors would like to acknowledge the Deputy of Research, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran for providing financial assistance. Authorship contribution statement: Dina Shahrampour : Conceptualization, Investigation, Methodology, Software, Data analysis, Writing – original draft. Morteza Khomeiri : Project administration, Methodology, Conceptualization, Writing – review & editing. Funding: This project was funded by the Deputy of Research, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran, but the grant information is not available. Data availability: Data will be made available on request. Ethics approval: This manuscript does not contain any studies involving human participants or animals performed by the authors. Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no competing interests. References Aarti C, Khusro A, Varghese R, Arasu MV, Agastian P, Al-Dhabi NA, Choi KC (2017) In vitro studies on probiotic and antioxidant properties of Lactobacillus brevis strain LAP2 isolated from Hentak, a fermented fish product of North-East India. LWT 86:438–446 Ahmad A, Yap WB, Kofli NT, Ghazali AR (2018) Probiotic potentials of Lactobacillus plantarum isolated from fermented durian (Tempoyak), a Malaysian traditional condiment. Food Sci Nutr 6(6):1370–1377 Angmo K, Kumari A, Bhalla TC (2016) Probiotic characterization of lactic acid bacteria isolated from fermented foods and beverage of Ladakh. LWT 66:428–435 Argyri AA, Zoumpopoulou G, Karatzas KAG, Tsakalidou E, Nychas GJE, Panagou EZ, Tassou CC (2013) Selection of potential probiotic lactic acid bacteria from fermented olives by in vitro tests. Food Microbiol 33(2):282–291 Buckenhüskes HJ (1993) Selection criteria for lactic acid bacteria to be used as starter cultures for various food commodities. FEMS Microbiol Rev 12(1–3):253–271 Ciuffreda E, Veronica A, Cifelli A, Foti R, Forte RI, Graziani F, Ricciardi EF (2014) Functional Characterization of Bifidobacteria of Human Origin: A Case Study by the Students of Food Science and Technology of the University of Foggia (Southern Italy). Food Nutr Sci, 2014 Collado MC, Meriluoto J, Salminen S (2008) Adhesion and aggregation properties of probiotic and pathogen strains. Eur Food Res Technol 226:1065–1073 Danielsen M, Wind A (2003) Susceptibility of Lactobacillus spp. to antimicrobial agents. Int J Food Microbiol 82(1):1–11 Di Cagno R, Minervini G, Sgarbi E, Lazzi C, Bernini V, Neviani E, Gobbetti M (2010) Comparison of phenotypic (Biolog System) and genotypic (random amplified polymorphic DNA-polymerase chain reaction, RAPD-PCR, and amplified fragment length polymorphism, AFLP) methods for typing Lactobacillus plantarum isolates from raw vegetables and fruits. Int J Food Microbiol 143(3):246–253 Ding W, Wang L, Zhang J, Ke W, Zhou J, Zhu J, Long R (2017) Characterization of antioxidant properties of lactic acid bacteria isolated from spontaneously fermented yak milk in the Tibetan Plateau. J Funct Foods 35:481–488 Du Toit M, Franz C, Dicks L, Schillinger U, Haberer P, Warlies B, Holzapfel W (1998) Characterisation and selection of probiotic lactobacilli for a preliminary minipig feeding trial and their effect on serum cholesterol levels, faeces pH and faeces moisture content. Int J Food Microbiol 40(1–2):93–104 Fu B, Huang X, Ma J, Chen Q, Zhang Q, Yu P (2022) Characterization of an inositol-producing Lactobacillus plantarum strain and the assessment of its probiotic potential and antibacterial activity. LWT 153:112553 Garcia-Gonzalez N, Bottacini F, Van Sinderen D, Gahan CG, Corsetti A (2022) Comparative Genomics of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum: Insights into probiotic markers in strains isolated from the human gastrointestinal tract and fermented foods. Front Microbiol 13:854266 Gökmen GG, Sarıyıldız S, Cholakov R, Nalbantsoy A, Baler B, Aslan E, Kışla D (2024) A novel Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strain: probiotic properties and optimization of the growth conditions by response surface methodology. WORLD J MICROB BIOT 40(2):66 Han J, Sun Z, Chen Y, Guo J, Zhang S, Ji C (2025) Adaptive laboratory evolution and mechanisms of salt tolerance in Lactiplantibacillus plantarum. Food Biosci 63:105811 Helland MH, Wicklund T, Narvhus JA (2004) Growth and metabolism of selected strains of probiotic bacteria, in maize porridge with added malted barley. Int J Food Microbiol 91(3):305–313 Joint F (2002) WHO working group report on drafting guidelines for the evaluation of probiotics in food. Lond Ont Can 30(1):16–22 Jung JH, Kim SJ, Lee JY, Yoon SR, You SY, Kim SH (2019) Multifunctional properties of Lactobacillus plantarum strains WiKim83 and WiKim87 as a starter culture for fermented food. Food Sci Nutr 7(8):2505–2516 Karasu N, Şimşek Ö, Çon AH (2010) Technological and probiotic characteristics of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from traditionally produced fermented vegetables. Ann Microbiol 60:227–234 Kumari A, Angmo K, Monika, Bhalla TC (2016) Probiotic attributes of indigenous Lactobacillus spp. isolated from traditional fermented foods and beverages of north-western Himalayas using in vitro screening and principal component analysis. J Food Sci Technol 53:2463–2475 Lee KW, Shim JM, Park SK, Heo HJ, Kim HJ, Ham KS, Kim JH (2016) Isolation of lactic acid bacteria with probiotic potentials from kimchi, traditional Korean fermented vegetable. LWT 71:130–137 Li S, Tang S, He Q, Hu J, Zheng J (2019) Changes in proteolysis in fermented milk produced by Streptococcus thermophilus in co-culture with Lactobacillus plantarum or Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis during refrigerated storage. Mol 24(20):3699 Li S, Tang S, Mo R, Li J, Chen L (2023) Effects of NaCl curing and subsequent fermentation with Lactobacillus sakei or Lactobacillus plantarum on protein hydrolysis and oxidation in yak jerky. LWT 173:114298 Li S, Zhao Y, Zhang L, Zhang X, Huang L, Li D, Wang Q (2012) Antioxidant activity of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from traditional Chinese fermented foods. Food chem 135(3):1914–1919 Maragkoudakis PA, Zoumpopoulou G, Miaris C, Kalantzopoulos G, Pot B, Tsakalidou E (2006) Probiotic potential of Lactobacillus strains isolated from dairy products. Int Dairy J 16(3):189–199 Morrow LE, Gogineni V, Malesker MA (2012) Probiotics in the intensive care unit. NCP 27(2):235–241 Nayyeri N, Dovom E, Habibi Najafi MR, M. B., Bahreini M (2017) A preliminary study on antifungal activity of lactic acid bacteria isolated from different production stages of Lighvan cheese on Penicillium expansum and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa. J Food Meas Charact 11:1734–1744 Nwachukwu U, George-Okafor U, Ozoani U, Ojiagu N (2019) Assessment of probiotic potentials of Lactobacillus plantarum CS and Micrococcus luteus CS from fermented milled corn-soybean waste-meal. Sci Afr 6:e00183 Oguntoyinbo FA, Narbad A (2012) Molecular characterization of lactic acid bacteria and in situ amylase expression during traditional fermentation of cereal foods. Food Microbiol 31(2):254–262 Ołdak A, Zielińska D, Rzepkowska A, Kołożyn-Krajewska D (2017) Comparison of antibacterial activity of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from two different kinds of regional cheeses from Poland: Oscypek and Korycinski cheese. BioMed res int 2017(1):6820369 Parente E, Ciocia F, Ricciardi A, Zotta T, Felis GE, Torriani S (2010) Diversity of stress tolerance in Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus pentosus and Lactobacillus paraplantarum: a multivariate screening study. Int J Food Microbiol 144(2):270–279 Polak-Berecka M, Waśko A, Paduch R, Skrzypek T, Sroka-Bartnicka A (2014) The effect of cell surface components on adhesion ability of Lactobacillus rhamnosus. ALJMAO 106:751–762 Ramiah K, Van Reenen C, Dicks L (2007) Expression of the mucus adhesion genes Mub and MapA, adhesion-like factor EF-Tu and bacteriocin gene plaA of Lactobacillus plantarum 423, monitored with real-time PCR. Int J Food Microbiol 116(3):405–409 Ramos CL, Thorsen L, Schwan RF, Jespersen L (2013) Strain-specific probiotics properties of Lactobacillus fermentum, Lactobacillus plantarum and Lactobacillus brevis isolates from Brazilian food products. Food microbiol 36(1):22–29 Rhee SJ, Lee J-E, Lee C-H (2011) Importance of lactic acid bacteria in Asian fermented foods. Microb cell fact 10:1–13 Rocha-Ramírez LM, Hernández-Chiñas U, Silvia Selene Moreno-Guerrero, Arturo Ramírez-Pacheco, and, Carlos A, Eslava (2021) Probiotic properties and immunomodulatory activity of Lactobacillus strains isolated from dairy products. Microorganisms, 9 (4) Russo P, Arena MP, Fiocco D, Capozzi V, Drider D, Spano G (2017) Lactobacillus plantarum with broad antifungal activity: A promising approach to increase safety and shelf-life of cereal-based products. Int J Food Microbiol 247:48–54 Sanchez I, Palop L, Ballesteros C (2000) Biochemical characterization of lactic acid bacteria isolated from spontaneous fermentation of ‘Almagro’eggplants. Int J Food Microbiol 59(1–2):9–17 Sangmanee P, Hongpattarakere T (2014) Inhibitory of multiple antifungal components produced by Lactobacillus plantarum K35 on growth, aflatoxin production and ultrastructure alterations of Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. Food Control 40:224–233 Savijoki K, Ingmer H, Varmanen P (2006) Proteolytic systems of lactic acid bacteria. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 71:394–406 Sharma K, Mahajan R, Attri S, Goel G (2017) Selection of indigenous Lactobacillus paracasei CD4 and Lactobacillus gastricus BTM 7 as probiotic: assessment of traits combined with principal component analysis. J Appl Microbiol 122(5):1310–1320 Siezen RJ, Tzeneva VA, Castioni A, Wels M, Phan HT, Rademaker JL, van Hylckama Vlieg JE (2010) Phenotypic and genomic diversity of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from various environmental niches. Environ microbiol 12(3):758–773 Siezen RJ, van Vlieg H, J. E (2011) Genomic diversity and versatility of Lactobacillus plantarum, a natural metabolic engineer. Microb cell fact 10:1–13 Son S-H, Jeon H-L, Jeon EB, Lee N-K, Park Y-S, Kang D-K, Paik H-D (2017) Potential probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum Ln4 from kimchi: Evaluation of β-galactosidase and antioxidant activities. LWT 85:181–186 Šušković J, Kos B, Beganović J, Leboš Pavunc A, Habjanič K, Matošić S (2010) Antimicrobial activity–the most important property of probiotic and starter lactic acid bacteria. Food Technol Biotechnol 48(3):296–307 Tafti AG, Peighambardoust S, Hejazi M (2013) Biochemical characterization and technological properties of predominant Lactobacilli isolated from East-Azarbaijan sourdoughs (Iran). Int Food Res J 20(6):3293 Taheur FB, Kouidhi B, Fdhila K, Elabed H, Slama RB, Mahdouani K, Bakhrouf A, Chaieb K (2016) Anti-bacterial and anti-biofilm activity of probiotic bacteria against oral pathogens. Microb pathog 97:213–220 Tofangsazan F, Shahidi F, Mortazavi SA, Milani E, Eshaghi Z (2013) Investigation of antibacterial activity of Lactic Acid Bacteria isolated from traditional kordish cheese in comparison with commercial strains. Iran J Med Microbiol 7(3):34–41 Toledano A, Jordano R, López C, Medina L (2011) Proteolytic activity of lactic acid bacteria strains and fungal biota for potential use as starter cultures in dry-cured ham. J Food Prot 74(5):826–829 Tremonte P, Pannella G, Succi M, Tipaldi L, Sturchio M, Coppola R, Sorrentino E (2017) Antimicrobial activity of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from different environments: A preliminary study. Int Food Res J 24(2):852–859 Turchi B, Mancini S, Fratini F, Pedonese F, Nuvoloni R, Bertelloni F, Cerri D (2013) Preliminary evaluation of probiotic potential of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from Italian food products. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 29:1913–1922 Uugantsetseg E, Batjargal B (2014) Antioxidant activity of probiotic lactic acid bacteria isolated from Mongolian airag. Mong J Chem 15:73–78 Vinderola G, Sanders ME, Cunningham M, Hill C (2024) Frequently asked questions about the ISAPP postbiotic definition. Front Microbiol 14:1324565 Wang G, Yu H, Feng X, Tang H, Xiong Z, Xia Y, Song X (2021) Specific bile salt hydrolase genes in Lactobacillus plantarum AR113 and relationship with bile salt resistance. LWT 145:111208 Wu S, Chen Y, Chen Z, Zhou Q, Wei F, Li P, Gu Q (2023) Antioxidant properties and molecular mechanisms of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum ZJ316: A potential probiotic resource. LWT 187:115269 Yang E, Chang H (2010) Purification of a new antifungal compound produced by Lactobacillus plantarum AF1 isolated from kimchi. Int J Food Microbiol 139(1–2):56–63 Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files supplementaryfile.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6089267","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":424354705,"identity":"aa8bc9f7-e4b2-4280-b4ad-b4a1ce531e69","order_by":0,"name":"Dina Shahrampour","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABBklEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDCCAwxsDIwNMF4FAw87lMNDpJYzDDw8B5hJ0cLYBlQK1YIT8B1gf/bg54578rqzm49JV867J8PDf/4Aw48aBhnzBuxaJA/wmBv2nik23HbnWJrk2W3FPDwSyQyMPccYeGQOYNdicICHTYK3LYFx240cM8nGbQk89hJAh/E2MPBI4HCYAdBhkn/bEuwhWuYk8PDwH2Zg/ItXC4OZNNCWRIiWBqAWhmQGZny2SB7mMZOWbUtIBvol2bLhWALILwaHZY5J4NTCd7z9meTbtgTbbbebD95sqEmw5+E/+PDhmxobe1xaGOCRgKziACoXFyBGzSgYBaNgFIxMAABBI1Jk6bTMKQAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Research Institute of Food Science and Technology (RIFST)","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Dina","middleName":"","lastName":"Shahrampour","suffix":""},{"id":424354707,"identity":"352eeb26-14df-4bf0-a97f-976d7437ced7","order_by":1,"name":"Morteza Khomeiri","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Morteza","middleName":"","lastName":"Khomeiri","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-02-23 09:38:16","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6089267/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6089267/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":77787885,"identity":"c3360ec3-229e-418c-8d19-1a592f5e530b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-03-05 13:59:37","extension":"jpeg","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":38025,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eDendrogram obtained from RAPD-PCR fingerprinting pattern using primers M13, P4 and P7 of studied \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003estrains isolated from some fermented foods with reference strains (LP).\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage1.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6089267/v1/8cafae11b25fceb35c4ac62b.jpeg"},{"id":77789220,"identity":"31e9292d-4174-4c0c-856e-9a400554d018","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-03-05 14:15:37","extension":"png","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":24653,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eProteolytic activity of various \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains on skim milk agar. (Different letters on each column indicate significantly different values (p \u0026lt; 0.05) according to Duncan’s post hoc means comparison test).\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage2.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6089267/v1/14671862d5e0db2936ce041a.png"},{"id":77789222,"identity":"1c71e750-5ead-4954-8540-1a6ecd523ad5","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-03-05 14:15:37","extension":"jpeg","order_by":3,"title":"Figure 3","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":828119,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eAntibacterial (a) and Antifungal (b) activity of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus GG\u003c/em\u003e in spot-on-the-lawn method. (Different letters on each column indicate significantly different values (p \u0026lt; 0.05) according to Duncan’s post hoc means comparison test).\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage3.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6089267/v1/e9f0c0ff3cf48737ab94b901.jpeg"},{"id":77787883,"identity":"3a91d635-ed53-4230-b801-f93609d245d3","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-03-05 13:59:37","extension":"png","order_by":4,"title":"Figure 4","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":30037,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eAntibacterial activity of postbiotic derived from \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG. (Different letters on each column indicate significantly different values (p \u0026lt; 0.05) according to Duncan’s post hoc means comparison test).\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage4.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6089267/v1/e321a20241e223d5f3b85de8.png"},{"id":77788029,"identity":"05a8520d-963b-4371-bafc-006f846a505c","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-03-05 14:07:38","extension":"jpeg","order_by":5,"title":"Figure 5","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":333305,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eAntioxidant activity of cells (a) and postbiotic (b) of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus GG\u003c/em\u003e. (Different letters in each column indicate significantly different values (p \u0026lt; 0.05) according to Duncan’s post hoc means comparison test).\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage5.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6089267/v1/1174384342116c14089dd508.jpeg"},{"id":77788028,"identity":"fe6574dd-d283-4e8d-8c0d-8035d985d8c9","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-03-05 14:07:38","extension":"jpeg","order_by":6,"title":"Figure 6","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":155497,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eDesign of 11 Lactobacillus strains in the space of PC1 and PC2 in principle component analysis (PCA) for selection of the most promising \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003eindigenous isolate.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage6.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6089267/v1/3fbba2ac5dc3b010715de897.jpeg"},{"id":88502845,"identity":"5524a6d4-408a-416f-8ec7-df49d4919c63","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-08-07 07:02:19","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":3033391,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6089267/v1/23d42eb7-2b7d-4a95-bb04-8c1495c695d6.pdf"},{"id":77788030,"identity":"968db62f-5c35-4602-b89c-c7882432fb28","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-03-05 14:07:38","extension":"pdf","order_by":3,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":367350,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"supplementaryfile.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6089267/v1/1e02e215e9a74168c13eefa6.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Comparison of probiotic potential, antimicrobial, antioxidant and technological characteristics of various Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strains isolated from fermented foods","fulltext":[{"header":"1. Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003eThere are several types of fermented food products around the world with various microbial flora because of different raw materials and fermentation conditions. The consumption of fermented foods has long been common in many parts of Iran as in other Asian countries. In general, fermented foods can be classified into five groups including dairy, meat, cereal, vegetable products and beverages (Rhee, Lee, \u0026amp; Lee, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e). Fermented foods are produced by a large number of beneficial microorganisms, such as Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) that add as starter culture or constitute the natural flora of their raw material. LABs are gram-positive, catalase-negative and nonspore-forming bacteria that are generally recognized as safe (GRAS), and their major product is lactic acid. In contrast, fermented foods have been introduced as a suitable carrier for LAB with probiotic properties (Kumari, Angmo, Monika, \u0026amp; Bhalla, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). Three genera Lactobacillus, Enterococcus and Bifidobacterium are the main members of the probiotic microorganisms. A definition has been proposed for probiotics by FAO and WHO in 2002. Probiotics defined as living organisms conferring health benefits on the host when eaten in sufficient quantities (10\u003csup\u003e6\u003c/sup\u003e-10\u003csup\u003e9\u003c/sup\u003e CFU/g or ml). By maintaining the balance of the intestinal microbial community, probiotics prevent the growth of pathogenic bacteria, improve resistance to infection, promote good digestion and stimulate the immune system (Helland, Wicklund, \u0026amp; Narvhus, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e). In contrast, the International Scientific Association of Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP) in 2021 suggested the following definition for postbiotics: \" inactive microorganisms and/or their components and metabolites that provide a health benefit to the host\" (Vinderola, Sanders, Cunningham, \u0026amp; Hill, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR53\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eLactiplantibacillus plantarum\u003c/em\u003e is a well-known species of the \u003cem\u003eLactiplantibacillus\u003c/em\u003e genus found in many environments, from the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract to various fermented foods, because of its ability to cope with stress conditions. In addition, \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains have good technological properties and health benefits due to the production of functional compounds when used as starter cultures or bioprotective agents. Moreover, the probiotic potential of many strains of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e has been reported in previous studies (Ahmad, Yap, Kofli, \u0026amp; Ghazali, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e; Nwachukwu, George-Okafor, Ozoani, \u0026amp; Ojiagu, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Son et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR44\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlthough some research have evaluated the antimicrobial activity (Tremonte et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR50\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e), probiotic potential [6], or molecular typing of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains (Di Cagno et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e; Siezen et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR42\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e), there is still a high level of interest in studying the other properties of this adaptable and versatile species.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eConsidering the different potential of indigenous strains, this study was built to investigate the multifunctional features (technological, probiotic, antimicrobial and antioxidant) of 10 strains of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e originating from different fermented foods. The genetic diversity of strains was also investigated by RAPD-PCR. Finally, the best candidate strain as a new probiotic that could be used in functional food production was determined by comparing it to commercial strains by principal component analysis (PCA).\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"2. Materials and methods","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec3\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.1. Microorganisms and culture conditions\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe 10 \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e isolates were obtained from the culture collection of the Department of Food Science and Technology of Gorgan University, Iran (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e). The other microorganisms, such as \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e (PTCC 1745), \u003cem\u003eEscherichia coli\u003c/em\u003e (PTCC 1399), \u003cem\u003eListeria monocytogenes\u003c/em\u003e (PTCC 1298), \u003cem\u003eAspergillus niger\u003c/em\u003e (PTCC 5154) and \u003cem\u003eAspergillus flavus\u003c/em\u003e (PTCC 5004) were purchased from Iranian Research Organization for Science and Technology (IROST). Molecular identification of all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains was previously performed using partial 16S rRNA sequencing and the results were checked using the BLASTn procedure with available data in NCBI gene bank. Stock culture of all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and indicator microorganisms containing 30% glycerol preserved at -20\u0026deg;C. The \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains, pathogen bacteria and molds were grown in MRS broth (de Man, Rogosa and Sharpe, Liofilchem, Italy), Muller Hinton broth (Liofilchem, Italy), and YGC agar (Merck, Germany), respectively.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains originated from various fermented foods in this study.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"4\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCode\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eStrains\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAccession number in NCBI\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSource\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO17\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum subsp. plantarum strain W2\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKX 261527.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFermented olive\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO80\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum strain CSCWL 7\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;3\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKR 055065.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFermented olive\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO21\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum partial 16S rRNA gene\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLT 593850.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFermented olive\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO41\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum strain CSI 7\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKM 513642.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFermented olive\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO64\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum strain NBRC 15891\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNR 112690.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFermented olive\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMC45\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum strain gp 57\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKM 495883.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eJug cheese\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMC61\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum strain gp 46\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKM 495875.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eJug cheese\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMC37\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum strain KLDS 610.1\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEU 419598.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eJug cheese\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMM5\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum strain gp106\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKM 495894.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCamel milk\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKES10\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum strain CIP 103151\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNR 104573.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003esourdough\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec4\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.2. DNA extraction\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e (PTCC 1745) was used as a reference strain for molecular analyses. Genomic DNA from all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains was extracted using a commercial DNA extraction kit (Bacterial DNA isolation kit, Dnazist Asia, Iran) according to the protocol of manufacture. The quantity and purity of DNA were assayed using Nano Drop ND-1000 spectrophotometer (Thermo Fisher Scientific, USA).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec5\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.3. Genotypic characterization using RAPD-PCR analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"BlockQuote\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe RAPD-PCR reactions of each \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strain were performed using the following three oligonucleotide primers M13 (GAGGGTGGCGGTTCT), P7 (AGCAGCGTCG) and P4 (CCGCAGCGTT) in three separate amplifications in a Thermal Cycler (Di Cagno et al., 2008). The total reaction volume carried out in 20-\u0026micro;l included 10 \u0026micro;l Master Mix Red (Amplicon, Denmark), 2 \u0026micro;l primer at a concentration of 0.5 mM, 6 \u0026micro;l ddH2O, and 2 \u0026micro;l undiluted bacterial DNA. Water was used instead of the template DNA as a negative control in all runs. Subsequently, amplified DNA fragments were electrophoresed in 1.5% (w/v) agarose gel in TBE buffer for 2 h at a constant voltage of 100 V and were visualized under UV light (Kiagen, Iran). A 1 Kb plus DNA Ladder (Fermentas, USA) was included in each gel to estimate the molecular weight of the amplified DNA fragments.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eOnly well-defined, reproducible amplified fragments were recorded by noting the presence or absence of DNA bands, resulting in binary 0/1 matrices. Ultimately, the three sets of RAPD-PCR profiles were assessed and integrated to generate a single dendrogram using NTSYS software (version 2.2). The peak matrices from both the Biolog System and RAPD-PCR were analyzed through clustering, and the three sets of RAPD-PCR profiles were combined to produce a unique dendrogram.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec6\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.4. Technological characteristics of L. plantarum strains\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe survival of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains at different temperatures (5, 10, 37 and 45\u0026deg;C) and NaCl concentrations (2, 4, 6, 8 and 10%) were analyzed in MRS broth according to the method of Sanchez et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2000\u003c/span\u003e)(Sanchez, Palop, \u0026amp; Ballesteros, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2000\u003c/span\u003e). The proteolytic potential of 10 \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains was determined according to the method of Aarti et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e)(Aarti et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Agar media containing peptone (0.5% w/v), beef extract (0.3% w/v), skim milk (1% w/v) and agar (1.8% w/v) were prepared in plates, and some wells were punched with a sterilized cork borer. Overnight cultures of each bacterial strain were poured into wells and plates were kept at 37\u0026deg;C for 48 h. Finally, a clear zone around the wells indicates the potential for protease production by \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec7\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5. probiotic potential of L. plantarum strains\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec8\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.1. Hemolytic activity\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe hemolytic activity of each strain was analyzed by streaking fresh culture on blood agar plates containing 5% (v/v) sheep blood. After incubation for 24 h at 37\u0026deg;C, the plates were examined for hemolytic reaction and marked as α-hemolysis (green-hued zones around colonies), β-hemolysis (clear zones around colonies) or \u0026#120574;-hemolysis (no zones around colonies)(Angmo, Kumari, \u0026amp; Bhalla, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec9\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.2. Antibiotic resistance\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe antibiotic resistance of bacterial strains against 10 common antibiotics was evaluated using the disc diffusion method as stated by Turchi et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR51\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) (Turchi, 2013).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec10\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.3. Tolerance to low pH\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe tolerance of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG (control strain) in low pH environments was tested by the method of Lee et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e)(Lee, 2016) with little modification. Briefly, 1 ml of an fresh culture of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains was inoculated in 9 ml sterile MRS broth tubes ( ̴ 10\u003csup\u003e8\u003c/sup\u003e cfu/ml ), where the pH was adjusted to 2 or 3 by 1M HCL. All tubes were incubated at 37\u0026deg;C for 3 h to reflect the time spent in the stomach with food. The resistance of bacterial cells was evaluated at 0 and 3 h using the standard plate counting method on MRS agar and expressed as the log of colony-forming units per ml (Log CFU/ml). Survival percentage was estimated using the following Eq.\u0026nbsp;(1):\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e% Survival\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;final counts (CFU/ml)/ initial counts (CFU/ml) \u0026times;100 (1)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec11\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.4. Tolerance to bile salts\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe bile salts tolerance was determined by inoculating 1 ml of an fresh culture of \u003cem\u003eL\u003c/em\u003e. \u003cem\u003eplantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains or \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG in 9 ml sterile MRS broth containing 0.3% (w/v) Oxgall Bile and incubating for 4 h at 37\u0026deg;C. Bacterial cells were counted at 0 h and 4 h on the MRS agar plate and resistance were evaluated in terms of viable colony counts per ml (CFU/ml) (Maragkoudakis, 2006). The survival percentage was calculated as follows:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e% survival\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;final counts (CFU/ml)/ initial counts (CFU/ml) \u0026times;100 (2)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec12\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.5. Antimicrobial activity\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe spot-on-the-lawn method was performed as stated by Termonte et al. (2017)(Tremonte et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR50\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). The antibacterial and antifungal effects of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains against \u003cem\u003eE. coli, L. monocytogenes\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eA. niger\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eA. flavus\u003c/em\u003e were detected by observation of inhibition zones around each spot after 24 h at 37\u0026deg;C.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec13\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.6. Aggregation properties\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe bacterial cell\u0026rsquo;s ability to aggregate with same or different cells is referred to as auto-aggregation and co-aggregation, respectively. In this study, the aggregation properties of all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG were analyzed according to Collado et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2008\u003c/span\u003e)(Collado, 2008) method with slight modifications. The bacterial cell suspensions were provided in PBS buffer with optical density 0.25\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.05 at 600 nm (about 10\u003csup\u003e8\u003c/sup\u003e CFU/ml). For the auto-aggregation experiment, 4 ml of each strain\u0026rsquo;s suspension was vortexed in a sterile tube for 10s. For the co-aggregation test, equal volumes (2 ml) of each \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and pathogen bacteria were mixed and kept at ambient temperature for 24 h. The optical density of samples at 600 nm by spectrophotometer (PG-Instrument-LTD, USA) was monitored at 0 h and 24 h, and the aggregation percentage was estimated by following formula (3):\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAuto-aggregation (%)= [1- A\u003csub\u003et\u003c/sub\u003e /A\u003csub\u003e0\u003c/sub\u003e]\u0026times;100 (3)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWhere: A\u003csub\u003et\u003c/sub\u003e = the absorbance at time t, A\u003csub\u003e0\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;the absorbance at t\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eCo-aggregation= [(A\u003csub\u003eL\u003c/sub\u003e + A\u003csub\u003epat\u003c/sub\u003e) / 2] \u0026ndash; A\u003csub\u003emix\u003c/sub\u003e/ [(A\u003csub\u003eL\u003c/sub\u003e+ A\u003csub\u003epat\u003c/sub\u003e) / 2] \u0026times; 100 (4)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWhere: A\u003csub\u003eL\u003c/sub\u003e= absorbance of \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e strain, A\u003csub\u003epat\u003c/sub\u003e= absorbance of bacterial pathogens, A\u003csub\u003emix\u003c/sub\u003e= absorbance of the mixture of \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e strain with one of the bacterial pathogens.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec14\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.7. Cell surface hydrophobicity\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe hydrophobicity of microbial cells was evaluated according to adhesion to hydrocarbons. In this study, decan and ethyl-acetate were used as nonpolar and monopolar basic solvents, respectively. Overnight cultures of all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG were centrifuged at 4000 g for 15 min, and the pellet was washed and suspended in PBS buffer (pH\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;7) to cell density 10\u003csup\u003e8\u003c/sup\u003e CFU/ml. The optical density of the suspension was measured at 580 nm and recorded as A0. Next, 2 ml of the bacterial cell suspension was combined with an equal volume of solvent and vortexed vigorously for 2 minutes. The mixture was then incubated at room temperature for 20 minutes to allow complete separation of the organic and aqueous phases. The absorbance of the top layer (aqueous phase) was measured at 580 nm and recorded as A1 [18]. The percentage of cell surface hydrophobicity was calculated using the following Eq.\u0026nbsp;(5):\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e% Hydrophobicity = (1 \u0026ndash; A\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e/A\u003csub\u003e0\u003c/sub\u003e) \u0026times; 100 (5)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec15\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.6. Antioxidant activity\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe antioxidant activity of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG cells and cell-free supernatant as postbiotic were evaluated by the scavenging of DPPH (2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) free radical method. Briefly, 2 ml of the bacterial cell suspension (10\u003csup\u003e8\u003c/sup\u003e Cfu/ml) and 0.1 ml of postbiotic were added to 1 and 3.9 ml of DPPH solution (0.05 mM), respectively. The mixture of DPPH solution and water was used as a control. Absorption of all samples was determined at 517 nm, the DPPH radical scavenging capacity was estimated as follows (Aarti et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e):\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eDPPH scavenging activity (%) = [A \u003csub\u003econtrol\u003c/sub\u003e- A \u003csub\u003esample\u003c/sub\u003e/ A\u003csub\u003econtrol\u003c/sub\u003e] \u0026times;100 (6)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec16\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.7. Statistical analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe results are presented as the average values of three replicates, expressed as means\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;SD. Differences between the average treatment values were analyzed using Duncan's test with SPSS software (Version 23, SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL). Significant differences between treatments were considered when p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05. Principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted using XLSTAT software (USA, 2018) to compare different L. plantarum strains with the probiotic reference strain (\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG) to identify the indigenous probiotic \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e isolate.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"3. Results and discussion","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec18\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.1. RAPD-PCR analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eFirst, the \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e species isolated from different fermented foods were identified based on the nucleotide sequence data of 16S rRNA genes. The genomic diversity of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e isolates studied by RAPD-PCR analysis using three primers (M13, P4, and P7) with randomly chosen sequences. The dendrogram obtained from the combined RAPD-PCR patterns of the \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e isolates are shown in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e Cluster analysis was based on the Jaccard similarity coefficient and complete method, and two main clusters (A and B) were obtained. Based on the original habitat, all the \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e isolates from jug cheese, camel milk and sourdough and 2 isolates from fermented olives were included in cluster A. On the other hand, cluster B only included 3 isolates from fermented olives. The KAO64 and KAO17 strains that were isolated from fermented olive were the most similar and were placed in short distance from each other. These results indicated polymorphism among \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains isolated from different fermented foods. It has been reported that the selection of suitable bacteria for probiotic or starter culture is strain-dependent (Oguntoyinbo \u0026amp; Narbad, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e). The use of RAPD-PCR for \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e strain differentiation was documented by Di Cagno et al., (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e) and Oguntoyinbo and Narbad (2015) (Di Cagno et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e; Oguntoyinbo \u0026amp; Narbad, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec19\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.2. \u003cem\u003eTechnological characterization of L. plantarum strains\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe results presented in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e indicate that all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains grew well at 15\u0026deg;C and 37\u0026deg;C instead of 45\u0026deg;C. The lowest growth of strains was observed at 4\u0026deg;C. On the other hand, the growth of these strains decreased with increasing NaCl concentration in the medium such that no growth was observed at 10% NaCl concentration. Unlike the other strains, KMM5 isolated from Camel milk did not grow in the presence of 8% NaCl in broth medium. The salt tolerance of \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e spp. originating from fermented foods and beverages have been reported in other studies (Karasu, Şimşek, \u0026amp; \u0026Ccedil;on, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e; Kumari et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). Generally, the maximum NaCl concentration tolerance reported for L. plantarum strains ranges from 3\u0026ndash;6% (Fu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Sining Li, Tang, Mo, Li, \u0026amp; Chen, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR23\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e), which significantly limited its effective fermentation capabilities. To develop LAB starters with fermentation potential in a salt-stressed environment, it is essential to identify strains that possess salt resistance traits. The concentrations of 6% and 8% NaCl for processing of fermented vegetables are usually used (Buckenh\u0026uuml;skes, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1993\u003c/span\u003e). Therefore, in this study, nine \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains that could grow under such fermentation conditions were introduced. In another study, Han et al. (2024) (Han et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e) obtained sixteen \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e salt-tolerant strains that exhibited excellent genetic stability in stress conditions. Also, they stated the importance of bacterial cell wall length and cell morphology in the enhancement of salt tolerance.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eClear zones with diameters on skim milk agar represent the various proteolytic activity of all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains. The proteolytic activity was strain-dependent, and the highest and lowest proteolysis was observed in strains isolated from camel milk (KMM5), and fermented olives (KAO21), respectively (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e). The \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains have been identified as bacteria with favorable proteolytic activity in many kinds of research fields (Tafti, Peighambardoust, \u0026amp; Hejazi, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR46\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e; Toledano, Jordano, L\u0026oacute;pez, \u0026amp; Medina, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR49\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e). In another study, the casein proteolysis in fermented milk during cold storage in present of \u003cem\u003eStreptococcus thermophilus\u003c/em\u003e in co-culture with \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus plantarum\u003c/em\u003e or \u003cem\u003eBifidobacterium animalis\u003c/em\u003e subsp. \u003cem\u003eLactis\u003c/em\u003e was evaluated. The stronger degradation of casein occurred in milk containing co-culture of \u003cem\u003eStreptococcus thermophilus\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e (Sining Li, Tang, He, Hu, \u0026amp; Zheng, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e). The most important application of LABs is their use as a starter culture in fermented dairy products, because of their metabolic activity and the formation of texture and flavor by the proteolysis of casein (Savijoki, Ingmer, \u0026amp; Varmanen, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR40\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEffect of temperature and NaCl concentration on growth of various \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains isolated from different fermented foods.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"11\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c10\" colnum=\"10\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c11\" colnum=\"11\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"10\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTemperature (\u0026deg;C) NaCl concentration (%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e4\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e15\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e37\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e45\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e2\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e4\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e6\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e8\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e10\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO17\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003csup\u003e*\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO80\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO21\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO41\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO64\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMC45\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMC61\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMC37\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMM5\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKES10\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"11\"\u003e* + low growth, ++ medium growth, +++ high growth, - no growth\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec20\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3. Probiotic characterization of L. plantarum strains\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec21\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3.1. \u003cem\u003eHemolytic activity\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eSafety criteria, such as lack of hemolytic activity and antibiotic resistance, are considered when selecting probiotics (Joint, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2002\u003c/span\u003e). In this study, no hemolysis activity was observed for \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG. Similar observations for \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e spp. isolated from another fermented food were reported by Angmo et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e) and Argyri et al.(2013) (Angmo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e; Argyri, 2013).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec22\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3.2. \u003cem\u003eAntibiotic resistance\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eAs exhibited in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e, all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains derived from foods exhibited similar resistance to vancomycin as a glycopeptide antibiotic, unlike gentamicin. Sensitivity to Streptomycin and Kanamycin was only observed in KAO64 and KMM5. The MAR index had the lowest values (0.1) for these two strains and the highest values for \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG as a probiotic reference strain (0.6). In addition to vancomycin, streptomycin, and kanamycin, \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus GG\u003c/em\u003e showed resistance to Ampicillin, Penicillin and Clindamycin. According to previous studies, resistance to aminoglycoside antibiotics such as gentamicin, streptomycin and kanamycin in the \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e genus is intrinsic (Argyri, 2013; Danielsen \u0026amp; Wind, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2003\u003c/span\u003e). On the other hand, lactobacilli vancomycin-resistant genes are chromosomal encoded. Accordingly, there is no concern about the transfer of these genes between probiotics and pathogenic bacteria (Morrow, Gogineni, \u0026amp; Malesker, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAntibiotic resistance of various \u003cem\u003eL.plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"12\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c10\" colnum=\"10\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c11\" colnum=\"11\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c12\" colnum=\"12\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e strains\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"10\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAntibiotics\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c12\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMAR index value\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eP10\u003csup\u003e*\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eGM10\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAM10\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eC30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eV30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eK30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS10\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTE30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eE15\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCC20\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO17\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003csup\u003e**\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO80\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO21\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO41\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKAO64\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMC45\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMC61\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMC37\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKMM5\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKES10\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eLGG\u003c/b\u003e\u003csup\u003e\u003cb\u003e***\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eS\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eR\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"12\"\u003e*P, Penicillin (10 mg); GM, Gentamicin (10 mg); AM, Ampicillin (10 mg); C30, Chloramphenicol (30 mg); V30, Vancomycin (30 mg); K30, Kanamycin (30 mg); S10, Streptomycin (10 mg); TE30, Tetracycline (30 mg); E15, Erythromycin (15 mg); CC20, Clindamycin (20 mg). **\u0026ldquo;R\u0026rdquo;: Resistance; \u0026ldquo;S\u0026rdquo;: Sensitive.***LGG: \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec23\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3.3. \u003cem\u003eAcid Tolerance\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe viability potential of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains against acidic conditions is an important property to consider when selecting probiotic organisms. As shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e, all tested strains were alive when exposed to low pH and their survival in pH\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2 was less than pH\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3. The differences observed in bacterial tolerance under acidic conditions were due to differences in strains and their isolation sources. The highest resistance to low pH was detected in \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e KMC45 and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG. The viable count reduction of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e KMC45 was only 1.64 log after 3 h of exposure to pH\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2 in contrast with the other strains (2.5\u0026ndash;4.18 log CFU/ml). Some in vitro studies confirmed that \u003cem\u003elactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e viability was affected by pH value and more reduction observed at pH\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2\u0026ndash;4 compare with pH\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;7 (Turchi, 2013). Most strains of the \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e group isolated from sourdough compared with other LABs exhibited highly tolerant of acid, alkaline and osmotic stress in study of Parente et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e)(Karasu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e; Parente et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). Studies confirmed the significant withstanding acid stress of many strains of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e, which is critical for their survival in fermented foods and their role as probiotics. This potential is related to various physiological and biochemical mechanisms, although specific mechanisms can vary among different strains (Karasu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). In fact, \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e has a relatively large genome of 3.30 Mbp, coding for 3009 proteins, and reveals unusually diverse metabolic abilities compared to other LABs. Therefore, species exhibit significant genomic diversity, with much of it concentrated in specific regions of the chromosome that are closely linked to adaptations for different lifestyles (Garcia-Gonzalez, Bottacini, Van Sinderen, Gahan, \u0026amp; Corsetti, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Siezen \u0026amp; van Hylckama Vlieg, 2011).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec24\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3.4. \u003cem\u003eBile salts Tolerance\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eBile acids are produced from cholesterol in the liver and then released from the gallbladder into the duodenum in a conjugated form, resulting in their concentration in the intestine ranging from 0.3\u0026ndash;0.5%. The antimicrobial activity of bile salts against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria has been demonstrated, even at low concentrations. The results of this study indicate that all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains have a high level of tolerance to bile salts around \u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;97%, which is greater than that of the reference strain \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e). The \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e KMM5 survival rates were detected for KMC61 and KMC37 in present of bile salt. These results showed that all \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains in this study were more resistant to bile salt than other known probiotic Lactobacillus species in other research (Kumari et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e; Lee, 2016; Maragkoudakis, 2006). In a similar study, Lee et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e) (Lee, 2016)determined the survival rates of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eLeu. Mesenteroides\u003c/em\u003e that isolated from kimchi in the presence of 0.3% bile salts as 58.53% and 40.31%, respectively. In a recent study, \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e BG24 strain isolated from boza showed great tolerance and could grow in the presence of 0.5-2% bile salt in medium (G\u0026ouml;kmen et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2024\u003c/span\u003e). The bile salt tolerance of many LABs is related to their bile salt hydrolase activity, which can reduce toxic effects. Bile salt tolerance in \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains varies due to specific genes which are responsible for bile salt hydrolase activity (Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR54\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Moreover, food components can protect and improve the bile salt resistance of bacteria during digestion (Du Toit et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1998\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab4\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAcid and bile tolerance of various \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"12\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c10\" colnum=\"10\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c11\" colnum=\"11\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c12\" colnum=\"12\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e strains\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"11\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTVC\u003csup\u003e*\u003c/sup\u003e (Log CFU/ml) in pH\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2 TVC (Log CFU/ml) in pH\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3 TVC (Log CFU/ml)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ein Bile salts (0.3%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003et\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0 h\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003et\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3 h\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003esurvival\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c6\" namest=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003et\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0 h\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003et\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3 h\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSurvival\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003et\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0 h\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003et\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4 h\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003esurvival\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e(%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO17\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.22\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.39\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.03\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.46\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e61.19\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.93\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.47\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.53\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e94.19\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.25\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c11\" namest=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c12\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e105.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO80\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.32\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.28\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.39\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.15\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e59.97\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.85\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.38\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e106.7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.29\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.5\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.11\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e106.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.47\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.38\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e58.63\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.67\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.6\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.11\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.07\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e93.54\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.2\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.57\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e104.51\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO41\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.57\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.04\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.24\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e58.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.01\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.22\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.87\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e90.13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.1\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.17\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.65\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.27\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e106.79\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO64\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.27\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.48\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.69\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.11\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e64.51\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.2\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.63\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.07\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.63\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e86.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.41\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.18\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.66\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.28\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e102.97\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKMC45\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.99\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.29\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e6.52\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.14\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e81.60\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.26\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.9\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.48\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e119.8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.75\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.24\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.44\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.34\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e108.9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKMC61\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.83\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.09\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.31\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.99\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e55.04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.21\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.05\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e98.06\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.5\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.09\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.28\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.11\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e97.41\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKMC37\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.19\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.04\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e70.09\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.45\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9.36\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e110.7\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.49\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.12\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.29\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e97.64\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKMM5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.1\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.29\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.92\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.32\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e41.12\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.59\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.31\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.33\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e96.74\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.23\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.08\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.39\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e116.04\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKES10\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.67\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.17\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4.04\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.26\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e52.67\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.06\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.28\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e96.03\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.2\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.15\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.36\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.08\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e101.95\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLGG\u003csup\u003e*\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.18\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.84\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.14\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e81.33\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.25\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.2\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.55\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.15\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e104.13\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c9\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.34\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c10\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.76\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.11\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e105.72\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe results are reported as the average values of three replicates and are represented by means\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;SD.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e*LGG: \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG; TVC: Total viable Counts\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec25\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3.5. \u003cem\u003eAntimicrobial activity\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe antibacterial potential of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains against undesirable microorganisms was determined using the spot-on-the-lawn test (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e(a)). The studied strains demonstrated strong antibacterial properties, and the inhibition zones varied between 25 and 60 mm. The \u003cem\u003eE. coli\u003c/em\u003e as a gram-negative bacterium was more sensitive than \u003cem\u003eL. monocytogenes\u003c/em\u003e as a gram-positive bacterium to inhibitory compounds of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains. As a general consideration, the antimicrobial potential of LAB is strain-dependent, which has been confirmed by other authors (Ołdak, Zielińska, Rzepkowska, \u0026amp; Kołożyn-Krajewska, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e; Tremonte et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR50\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). The \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG had the highest antibacterial activity compared with \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains. Among the tested \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains, KAO80 and KAO41 strains had the largest diameters of inhibition zones against \u003cem\u003eE. coli\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eL. monocytogenes\u003c/em\u003e, respectively. As shown in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e, the highest antibacterial activity of postbiotic components against gram positive and gram-negative bacterial pathogens belonged to KMC45 strain. In general, no considerable differences were observed between the reference strain and \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains in this regard, which is probably related to the similarity of the antimicrobial compounds that produced during growth in MRS medium under constant conditions. The antimicrobial activity of LAB is due to the production of different metabolites such as organic acids (lactic and acetic acid, etc) hydrogen peroxide, ethanol, diacetyl, acetaldehyde, acetone, carbon dioxide, reuterin, reutericyclin and bacteriocins (Šušković et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe antifungal activity of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains is shown in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e (b). According to the inhibition zone around of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e spots, \u003cem\u003eA. niger\u003c/em\u003e (12.33\u0026ndash;20.67 mm) was more resistant than \u003cem\u003eA. flavus\u003c/em\u003e (14.67\u0026ndash;26.5 mm). Most of the tested \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains exhibited moderate inhibition against both molds, and the inhibition halo diameter were measured\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;15 mm. Moreover, the antifungal activity of these 10 \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains against \u003cem\u003eA. flavus\u003c/em\u003e was more than \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e K35 in similar study of Sangmanee., \u0026amp; Hongpattarakere (2014)(Sangmanee \u0026amp; Hongpattarakere, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR39\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). In addition, weak antifungal potential reported for some \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e isolates in previous research, for example, only 10 strains of 19 \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains isolated from Lighvan cheese demonstrated antifungal activity against \u003cem\u003ePenicillium expansum\u003c/em\u003e (Nayyeri et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Several studies also have confirmed a broad spectrum of antifungal activity of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains against various food spoilage fungi \u003cem\u003eA. niger\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eA. flavus\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eFusarium culmorum\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePenicillium roqueforti\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eP. expansum, P. chrysogenum\u003c/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eCladosporium spp\u003c/em\u003e (Russo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e; Yang \u0026amp; Chang, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR56\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe different results observed in several studies are probably due to the differences in microbial strains, isolation environment, and experimental conditions. The isolation environment and stressful conditions can affect the ability of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains to produce antimicrobial metabolites. In fact, exposure to severe stressful conditions such as Jug cheese and fermented olive in this study could improve the antimicrobial capabilities of isolated \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains compared to other isolates.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec26\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3.6. Aggregation properties\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe colonization ability of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains was determined via auto-aggregation and co-aggregation studies. The significant variability in auto-aggregation capacity (p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05) ranging from KES10 (7.13%) to KMC45 (58.78%) is presented in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab5\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e. The probiotic reference strain (LGG) had the highest auto-aggregation property. However, no significant difference was obtained among 50% of the strains in terms of this feature (p\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;0.05). In similar research higher auto- aggregation was observed for three \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e origined from kimchi with no significant of difference with \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG (Jung et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA wide range of differences in co-aggregation according to bacterial pathogens were observed for \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains. The highest co-aggregation interactions with \u003cem\u003eL. monocytogenes\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eE. coli\u003c/em\u003e were observed for the KES10 and KAO64 strains, respectively. These results revealed a higher co-aggregation potential of some \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains compared to \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e. In addition, the results of co-aggregation properties of some studied \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains in the presence of pathogenic bacteria such as \u003cem\u003eE. coli\u003c/em\u003e were higher than similar strains reported in the study of Tafangsazan et al. (2013) (Tofangsazan, Shahidi, Mortazavi, Milani, \u0026amp; Eshaghi, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR48\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) and were like strains reported in the study of Ramos et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR34\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e)(Ramos, 2013).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe lactobacillus, which are found in the human digestive system and referred to as probiotics, support host's health by prevention pathogenic colonization on the intestinal surface. In addition, the auto-aggregation of probiotics and their binding with intestinal cells is important for their barrier activity. The cell surface components of Lactobacillus, such as proteins, fatty acids, and polysaccharides, are involved in cell aggregation and depend on strain type and environmental conditions (Collado, 2008). To understand the effect of environmental factors on aggregation ability, Polak-Berecka et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e)(Polak-Berecka, 2014) demonstrated that the presence of simple sugars, lithium chloride, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and enzymatic treatment of the cell wall with proteinase K enzyme significantly reduced the aggregation properties of \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e strains by changing the structure of proteins and polysaccharides and other molecules on the cell surface.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec27\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.3.7. Cell surface hydrophobicity\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains indicated various hydrophobicity levels. According to Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab5\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e, the tendency of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains to adhere to Decan as a non-polar solvent compared with Ethyl-acetate as a monopolar basic solvent demonstrated the high capability of cell surface hydrophobicity of these bacteria. The highest hydrophobicity measured for KES10, KAO41, and KMC37 by adhesion to Decan was more than 80%. However, there were no significant differences in the hydrophobicity of the majority of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG (p\u0026thinsp;\u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;0.05). According to Taheur et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR47\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e) (Taheur, 2016) report, 70% of L. plantarum strains in the present study could be classified in the group with high surface hydrophobicity, which is more than other probiotic strains studied elsewhere (Ramos, 2013; Rocha-Ram\u0026iacute;rez, 2021). In fact, the hydrophobicity capacity of Lactobacillus spp isolates is closely related to their adhesion ability to intestinal epithelial cells (Karasu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). It is possible that environmental conditions play a major role in the expression of surface proteins among strains of a species and that considerable differences exist in the cell surface hydrophobicity of \u003cem\u003elactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e isolates (Ramiah, Van Reenen, \u0026amp; Dicks, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab5\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 5\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe auto-aggregation, co-aggregation and hydrophobicity properties of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus GG\u003c/em\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"6\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLactobacillus\u003c/em\u003e strains\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAuto-aggregation (%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCo-aggregation (%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c6\" namest=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAdhesion (%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eE. coli\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eL\u003c/em\u003e. \u003cem\u003emonocytogenes\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEthyl-acetate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDecan\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO17\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.12 \u003csup\u003ee*\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026plusmn;10.46\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.03 \u003csup\u003ed\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;21.83\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.16 \u003csup\u003ede\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;17.3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003csup\u003ed*\u003c/sup\u003e 1.05\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;15.47\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.53\u003csup\u003eab\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;74.33\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO80\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.3 \u003csup\u003ec\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;36.56\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.47 \u003csup\u003eh\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;5.99\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.76 \u003csup\u003ed\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;18.91\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.47\u003csup\u003ed\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;12.77\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.38 \u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026plusmn;80.49\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.1 \u003csup\u003ed\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;24.34\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.36 \u003csup\u003ef\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;14.21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.67 \u003csup\u003eg\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;7.24\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.27\u003csup\u003ed\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;18.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.67\u003csup\u003eab\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;72.74\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO41\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.3 \u003csup\u003eb\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;44.47\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.93 \u003csup\u003eb\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;31.76\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.77 \u003csup\u003eb\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;32.69\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.53\u003csup\u003eb\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;43.53\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.56 \u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026plusmn;85.94\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKAO64\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.93 \u003csup\u003ee\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;11.1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.33 \u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;44.27\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.79 \u003csup\u003eg\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;9.27\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.37 \u003csup\u003ee\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;9.52\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5.31\u003csup\u003ec\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;42.33\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKMC45\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.12 \u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;58.78\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.41 \u003csup\u003ec\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;28.95\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.53 \u003csup\u003ef\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;12.37\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.05\u003csup\u003ec\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;34.68\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.54 \u003csup\u003eb\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026plusmn;59.92\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKMC61\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003csup\u003ed\u003c/sup\u003e 1.35\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;21.54\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.17 \u003csup\u003eb\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;31.35\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.68 \u003csup\u003ec\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.49\u003csup\u003ed\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;17.09\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8.78 \u003csup\u003ec\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026plusmn;41.75\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKMC37\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.69 \u003csup\u003ee\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;9.96\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.17 \u003csup\u003eg\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;9.37\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.65 \u003csup\u003ef\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;12.77\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.48\u003csup\u003eb\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;46.14\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.31 \u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026plusmn;84.87\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKMM5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.7 \u003csup\u003ee\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;10.45\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.09 \u003csup\u003ee\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;18.46\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.49 \u003csup\u003ee\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;15.4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.28\u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;52.94\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1.58\u003csup\u003eab\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;71.72\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKES10\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e7.13\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.49 \u003csup\u003ee\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.78 \u003csup\u003ed\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;23.01\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0.81 \u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e \u0026plusmn;47.78\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2.26\u003csup\u003ec\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;33.73\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3.72 \u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e\u0026plusmn;86.07\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLGG\u003csup\u003e**\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e60.02\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.2 \u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e14.81\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.02 \u003csup\u003ef\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25.9\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.52 \u003csup\u003ec\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e55.82\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.79\u003csup\u003ea\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e75.22\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.1\u003csup\u003eab\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003ctfoot\u003e \u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"6\"\u003e*The results are reported as the average values of three replicates and are represented by means\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;SD. Different letter in each column indicate significantly different values (p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05) according to Duncan\u0026rsquo;s post hoc means comparison test. **LGG: \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tfoot\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec28\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e3.4. Antioxidant activity\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe DPPH free radical scavenging potential of the bacterial cell suspensions and their cell free supernatant (postbiotic) which is attributed to their hydrogen-donating capacity. The highest and lowest antioxidant activity of cell suspensions were observed for KAO64 (65.66%) and KMC37 (36.6%) strains, respectively (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig5\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e (a)). Moreover, there was no significant difference between 70% of our tested strains and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG, probably because of the similarity of cell surface compounds. In similar, the various \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains of Chinese fermented foods exhibited different DPPH scavenging effects ranging from 10 to 45% that was lower than that observed in this study (Shengyu Li et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e). According to Li et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e), the DPPH radical-scavenging ability depends on the cell surface components (proteins, polysaccharides and ferulic acid), whereas the antioxidant activity of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e C88 cells decreased significantly following enzymatic and chemical treatments (Shengyu Li et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e). On the other hand, the antioxidant activity of postbiotics of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains could be dependent on their isolated food origin (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig5\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e (b)). The Jug cheese isolates (KMC37, KMC45, and KMC61) postbiotic had the highest scavenging activity. In previous studies, the DPPH scavenging properties of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains postbiotic that were isolated from Airag (35.8%) and Kimchi (34- 40.97%) fermented foods, were lower than our study (Jung et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Son et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR44\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e; Uugantsetseg \u0026amp; Batjargal, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR52\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). The cells (59.82%) and postbiotics (99.02%) of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e ZJ316 isolated from healthy infant feces indicated differing DPPH scavenging potential with no significant difference with \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG (Wu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2023\u003c/span\u003e). These findings revealed that the antioxidant characteristics of LAB are strain-specific and could be related to the isolation environment. Arati et al (2017) reported that the antioxidant activity of postbiotics may result from proteinaceous compounds acting as efficient second metabolites(Aarti et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). In this respect, the ability to prevent or treat a variety of diseases like cardiovascular problems, diabetes, and ulcers of the gastrointestinal tract could be potentially beneficial in promoting host health due to the antioxidant effect of LAB bacteria (Ding et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003e4.4. Selection a new probiotic starter culture by principal component analysis (PCA)\u003c/b\u003e Finally, the most promising indigenous \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e isolate was selected through the principal component analysis (PCA). The analysis of PCA revealed that four principal components explained 70.18% of the total variation, while PC1 and PC2 accounted for 27.99% and 18.52%, respectively (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig6\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e). Three major groups (A, B and C) can be identified because of the variables in PCA's factorial space. The \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e KMC45 was the closest to the probiotic reference strain (LGG) located in group B. According to this finding, \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e KMC45 has the best potential as a new probiotic starter culture. In several previous studies, multivariate analysis methods such as cluster analysis and principal component analysis (PCA) have been applied to select suitable microbial strains as starter cultures. Cluster analysis is a tool in molecular biology that specifically refers to genotypes and subspecies, whereas PCA focuses on grouping strains based on their response to variables to differentiate microbial strains (Ciuffreda et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). For instance, Ciuffreda et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e) evaluated the probiotic and technological properties of eight Bifidobacterium strains isolated from human feces. These researchers employed PCA as a statistical method to select the most suitable strain with desirable characteristics (Ciuffreda et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). In another study, Kumari et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e) compared probiotic characteristics of 51 lactic acid bacteria orgined from Indian fermented foods with commercial probiotic strains such as \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus casei\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e using PCA. As a result, they introduced \u003cem\u003eL. brevis\u003c/em\u003e PLA2 as a novel indigenous probiotic starter culture (Kumari et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). Furthermore, Sharma et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e) applied both cluster analysis and PCA to assess the similarity of 75 lactic acid bacteria isolated from dairy products to the reference probiotic strain \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e GG. According to methods, \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus paracasei\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eLactobacillus gastricus\u003c/em\u003e exhibited the highest similarity to the reference strain (Sharma, Mahajan, Attri, \u0026amp; Goel, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"4. Conclusion","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe present study confirmed the diversity of 10 \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e originating from various fermented foods (olive, jug cheese, camel milk, sourdough) in RAPD-PCR analysis. In contrast to technological characteristics, \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains revealed high variation in their probiotic properties. This study demonstrated the greater capacity of one \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e isolate as a promising candidate for probiotic applications by principal component analysis (PCA). The \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e KMC45 was introduced as a new probiotic starter culture with multifunctional chrematistics that could be used in functional foods due to its high tolerance to gastrointestinal conditions in comparison to the reference commercial strain. Moreover, the selected Lactobacillus cell was similar to the commercial strain in terms of antimicrobial, aggregation, and antioxidant properties. The postbiotic derived from \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e KMC45 exhibited more antioxidant and antibacterial activity compared to \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e strain and others studied \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e isolates. Therefore, further in vivo studies are suggested to elucidate the potential health benefits of this novel probiotic starter for hosts and efficiency as a starter culture in the food industry.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAcknowledgment:\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003eThe authors would like to acknowledge the Deputy of Research, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran for providing financial assistance.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthorship contribution statement:\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cu\u003eDina Shahrampour\u003c/u\u003e: Conceptualization, Investigation, Methodology, Software, Data analysis, Writing \u0026ndash; original draft. \u003cu\u003eMorteza Khomeiri\u003c/u\u003e\u003cu\u003e:\u003c/u\u003e Project administration, Methodology, Conceptualization, Writing \u0026ndash; review \u0026amp; editing.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFunding:\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003eThis project was funded by the Deputy of Research, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran, but the grant information is not available.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eData availability:\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003eData will be made available on request.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEthics approval:\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003eThis manuscript does not contain any studies involving human participants or animals performed by the authors.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConflicts of Interest:\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003eThe authors declare no competing interests.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAarti C, Khusro A, Varghese R, Arasu MV, Agastian P, Al-Dhabi NA, Choi KC (2017) In vitro studies on probiotic and antioxidant properties of Lactobacillus brevis strain LAP2 isolated from Hentak, a fermented fish product of North-East India. LWT 86:438\u0026ndash;446\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAhmad A, Yap WB, Kofli NT, Ghazali AR (2018) Probiotic potentials of Lactobacillus plantarum isolated from fermented durian (Tempoyak), a Malaysian traditional condiment. Food Sci Nutr 6(6):1370\u0026ndash;1377\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAngmo K, Kumari A, Bhalla TC (2016) Probiotic characterization of lactic acid bacteria isolated from fermented foods and beverage of Ladakh. LWT 66:428\u0026ndash;435\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eArgyri AA, Zoumpopoulou G, Karatzas KAG, Tsakalidou E, Nychas GJE, Panagou EZ, Tassou CC (2013) Selection of potential probiotic lactic acid bacteria from fermented olives by in vitro tests. Food Microbiol 33(2):282\u0026ndash;291\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBuckenh\u0026uuml;skes HJ (1993) Selection criteria for lactic acid bacteria to be used as starter cultures for various food commodities. FEMS Microbiol Rev 12(1\u0026ndash;3):253\u0026ndash;271\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCiuffreda E, Veronica A, Cifelli A, Foti R, Forte RI, Graziani F, Ricciardi EF (2014) Functional Characterization of Bifidobacteria of Human Origin: A Case Study by the Students of Food Science and Technology of the University of Foggia (Southern Italy). \u003cem\u003eFood Nutr Sci, 2014\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCollado MC, Meriluoto J, Salminen S (2008) Adhesion and aggregation properties of probiotic and pathogen strains. Eur Food Res Technol 226:1065\u0026ndash;1073\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDanielsen M, Wind A (2003) Susceptibility of Lactobacillus spp. to antimicrobial agents. Int J Food Microbiol 82(1):1\u0026ndash;11\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDi Cagno R, Minervini G, Sgarbi E, Lazzi C, Bernini V, Neviani E, Gobbetti M (2010) Comparison of phenotypic (Biolog System) and genotypic (random amplified polymorphic DNA-polymerase chain reaction, RAPD-PCR, and amplified fragment length polymorphism, AFLP) methods for typing Lactobacillus plantarum isolates from raw vegetables and fruits. Int J Food Microbiol 143(3):246\u0026ndash;253\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDing W, Wang L, Zhang J, Ke W, Zhou J, Zhu J, Long R (2017) Characterization of antioxidant properties of lactic acid bacteria isolated from spontaneously fermented yak milk in the Tibetan Plateau. J Funct Foods 35:481\u0026ndash;488\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDu Toit M, Franz C, Dicks L, Schillinger U, Haberer P, Warlies B, Holzapfel W (1998) Characterisation and selection of probiotic lactobacilli for a preliminary minipig feeding trial and their effect on serum cholesterol levels, faeces pH and faeces moisture content. Int J Food Microbiol 40(1\u0026ndash;2):93\u0026ndash;104\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFu B, Huang X, Ma J, Chen Q, Zhang Q, Yu P (2022) Characterization of an inositol-producing Lactobacillus plantarum strain and the assessment of its probiotic potential and antibacterial activity. LWT 153:112553\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGarcia-Gonzalez N, Bottacini F, Van Sinderen D, Gahan CG, Corsetti A (2022) Comparative Genomics of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum: Insights into probiotic markers in strains isolated from the human gastrointestinal tract and fermented foods. Front Microbiol 13:854266\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eG\u0026ouml;kmen GG, Sarıyıldız S, Cholakov R, Nalbantsoy A, Baler B, Aslan E, Kışla D (2024) A novel Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strain: probiotic properties and optimization of the growth conditions by response surface methodology. WORLD J MICROB BIOT 40(2):66\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHan J, Sun Z, Chen Y, Guo J, Zhang S, Ji C (2025) Adaptive laboratory evolution and mechanisms of salt tolerance in Lactiplantibacillus plantarum. Food Biosci 63:105811\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHelland MH, Wicklund T, Narvhus JA (2004) Growth and metabolism of selected strains of probiotic bacteria, in maize porridge with added malted barley. Int J Food Microbiol 91(3):305\u0026ndash;313\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eJoint F (2002) WHO working group report on drafting guidelines for the evaluation of probiotics in food. Lond Ont Can 30(1):16\u0026ndash;22\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eJung JH, Kim SJ, Lee JY, Yoon SR, You SY, Kim SH (2019) Multifunctional properties of Lactobacillus plantarum strains WiKim83 and WiKim87 as a starter culture for fermented food. Food Sci Nutr 7(8):2505\u0026ndash;2516\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eKarasu N, Şimşek \u0026Ouml;, \u0026Ccedil;on AH (2010) Technological and probiotic characteristics of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from traditionally produced fermented vegetables. Ann Microbiol 60:227\u0026ndash;234\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eKumari A, Angmo K, Monika, Bhalla TC (2016) Probiotic attributes of indigenous Lactobacillus spp. isolated from traditional fermented foods and beverages of north-western Himalayas using in vitro screening and principal component analysis. J Food Sci Technol 53:2463\u0026ndash;2475\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLee KW, Shim JM, Park SK, Heo HJ, Kim HJ, Ham KS, Kim JH (2016) Isolation of lactic acid bacteria with probiotic potentials from kimchi, traditional Korean fermented vegetable. LWT 71:130\u0026ndash;137\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLi S, Tang S, He Q, Hu J, Zheng J (2019) Changes in proteolysis in fermented milk produced by Streptococcus thermophilus in co-culture with Lactobacillus plantarum or Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis during refrigerated storage. Mol 24(20):3699\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLi S, Tang S, Mo R, Li J, Chen L (2023) Effects of NaCl curing and subsequent fermentation with Lactobacillus sakei or Lactobacillus plantarum on protein hydrolysis and oxidation in yak jerky. LWT 173:114298\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLi S, Zhao Y, Zhang L, Zhang X, Huang L, Li D, Wang Q (2012) Antioxidant activity of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from traditional Chinese fermented foods. Food chem 135(3):1914\u0026ndash;1919\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMaragkoudakis PA, Zoumpopoulou G, Miaris C, Kalantzopoulos G, Pot B, Tsakalidou E (2006) Probiotic potential of Lactobacillus strains isolated from dairy products. Int Dairy J 16(3):189\u0026ndash;199\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMorrow LE, Gogineni V, Malesker MA (2012) Probiotics in the intensive care unit. NCP 27(2):235\u0026ndash;241\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eNayyeri N, Dovom E, Habibi Najafi MR, M. B., Bahreini M (2017) A preliminary study on antifungal activity of lactic acid bacteria isolated from different production stages of Lighvan cheese on Penicillium expansum and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa. J Food Meas Charact 11:1734\u0026ndash;1744\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eNwachukwu U, George-Okafor U, Ozoani U, Ojiagu N (2019) Assessment of probiotic potentials of Lactobacillus plantarum CS and Micrococcus luteus CS from fermented milled corn-soybean waste-meal. Sci Afr 6:e00183\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOguntoyinbo FA, Narbad A (2012) Molecular characterization of lactic acid bacteria and in situ amylase expression during traditional fermentation of cereal foods. Food Microbiol 31(2):254\u0026ndash;262\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOłdak A, Zielińska D, Rzepkowska A, Kołożyn-Krajewska D (2017) Comparison of antibacterial activity of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from two different kinds of regional cheeses from Poland: Oscypek and Korycinski cheese. BioMed res int 2017(1):6820369\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eParente E, Ciocia F, Ricciardi A, Zotta T, Felis GE, Torriani S (2010) Diversity of stress tolerance in Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus pentosus and Lactobacillus paraplantarum: a multivariate screening study. Int J Food Microbiol 144(2):270\u0026ndash;279\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePolak-Berecka M, Waśko A, Paduch R, Skrzypek T, Sroka-Bartnicka A (2014) The effect of cell surface components on adhesion ability of Lactobacillus rhamnosus. ALJMAO 106:751\u0026ndash;762\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRamiah K, Van Reenen C, Dicks L (2007) Expression of the mucus adhesion genes Mub and MapA, adhesion-like factor EF-Tu and bacteriocin gene plaA of Lactobacillus plantarum 423, monitored with real-time PCR. Int J Food Microbiol 116(3):405\u0026ndash;409\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRamos CL, Thorsen L, Schwan RF, Jespersen L (2013) Strain-specific probiotics properties of Lactobacillus fermentum, Lactobacillus plantarum and Lactobacillus brevis isolates from Brazilian food products. Food microbiol 36(1):22\u0026ndash;29\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRhee SJ, Lee J-E, Lee C-H (2011) Importance of lactic acid bacteria in Asian fermented foods. Microb cell fact 10:1\u0026ndash;13\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRocha-Ram\u0026iacute;rez LM, Hern\u0026aacute;ndez-Chi\u0026ntilde;as U, Silvia Selene Moreno-Guerrero, Arturo Ram\u0026iacute;rez-Pacheco, and, Carlos A, Eslava (2021) Probiotic properties and immunomodulatory activity of Lactobacillus strains isolated from dairy products. \u003cem\u003eMicroorganisms, 9\u003c/em\u003e(4)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRusso P, Arena MP, Fiocco D, Capozzi V, Drider D, Spano G (2017) Lactobacillus plantarum with broad antifungal activity: A promising approach to increase safety and shelf-life of cereal-based products. Int J Food Microbiol 247:48\u0026ndash;54\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSanchez I, Palop L, Ballesteros C (2000) Biochemical characterization of lactic acid bacteria isolated from spontaneous fermentation of \u0026lsquo;Almagro\u0026rsquo;eggplants. Int J Food Microbiol 59(1\u0026ndash;2):9\u0026ndash;17\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSangmanee P, Hongpattarakere T (2014) Inhibitory of multiple antifungal components produced by Lactobacillus plantarum K35 on growth, aflatoxin production and ultrastructure alterations of Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. Food Control 40:224\u0026ndash;233\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSavijoki K, Ingmer H, Varmanen P (2006) Proteolytic systems of lactic acid bacteria. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 71:394\u0026ndash;406\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSharma K, Mahajan R, Attri S, Goel G (2017) Selection of indigenous Lactobacillus paracasei CD4 and Lactobacillus gastricus BTM 7 as probiotic: assessment of traits combined with principal component analysis. J Appl Microbiol 122(5):1310\u0026ndash;1320\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSiezen RJ, Tzeneva VA, Castioni A, Wels M, Phan HT, Rademaker JL, van Hylckama Vlieg JE (2010) Phenotypic and genomic diversity of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from various environmental niches. Environ microbiol 12(3):758\u0026ndash;773\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSiezen RJ, van Vlieg H, J. E (2011) Genomic diversity and versatility of Lactobacillus plantarum, a natural metabolic engineer. Microb cell fact 10:1\u0026ndash;13\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSon S-H, Jeon H-L, Jeon EB, Lee N-K, Park Y-S, Kang D-K, Paik H-D (2017) Potential probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum Ln4 from kimchi: Evaluation of β-galactosidase and antioxidant activities. LWT 85:181\u0026ndash;186\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eŠušković J, Kos B, Beganović J, Leboš Pavunc A, Habjanič K, Matošić S (2010) Antimicrobial activity\u0026ndash;the most important property of probiotic and starter lactic acid bacteria. Food Technol Biotechnol 48(3):296\u0026ndash;307\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTafti AG, Peighambardoust S, Hejazi M (2013) Biochemical characterization and technological properties of predominant Lactobacilli isolated from East-Azarbaijan sourdoughs (Iran). Int Food Res J 20(6):3293\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTaheur FB, Kouidhi B, Fdhila K, Elabed H, Slama RB, Mahdouani K, Bakhrouf A, Chaieb K (2016) Anti-bacterial and anti-biofilm activity of probiotic bacteria against oral pathogens. Microb pathog 97:213\u0026ndash;220\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTofangsazan F, Shahidi F, Mortazavi SA, Milani E, Eshaghi Z (2013) Investigation of antibacterial activity of Lactic Acid Bacteria isolated from traditional kordish cheese in comparison with commercial strains. Iran J Med Microbiol 7(3):34\u0026ndash;41\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eToledano A, Jordano R, L\u0026oacute;pez C, Medina L (2011) Proteolytic activity of lactic acid bacteria strains and fungal biota for potential use as starter cultures in dry-cured ham. J Food Prot 74(5):826\u0026ndash;829\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTremonte P, Pannella G, Succi M, Tipaldi L, Sturchio M, Coppola R, Sorrentino E (2017) Antimicrobial activity of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from different environments: A preliminary study. Int Food Res J 24(2):852\u0026ndash;859\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTurchi B, Mancini S, Fratini F, Pedonese F, Nuvoloni R, Bertelloni F, Cerri D (2013) Preliminary evaluation of probiotic potential of Lactobacillus plantarum strains isolated from Italian food products. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 29:1913\u0026ndash;1922\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eUugantsetseg E, Batjargal B (2014) Antioxidant activity of probiotic lactic acid bacteria isolated from Mongolian airag. Mong J Chem 15:73\u0026ndash;78\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eVinderola G, Sanders ME, Cunningham M, Hill C (2024) Frequently asked questions about the ISAPP postbiotic definition. Front Microbiol 14:1324565\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWang G, Yu H, Feng X, Tang H, Xiong Z, Xia Y, Song X (2021) Specific bile salt hydrolase genes in Lactobacillus plantarum AR113 and relationship with bile salt resistance. LWT 145:111208\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWu S, Chen Y, Chen Z, Zhou Q, Wei F, Li P, Gu Q (2023) Antioxidant properties and molecular mechanisms of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum ZJ316: A potential probiotic resource. LWT 187:115269\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e \u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eYang E, Chang H (2010) Purification of a new antifungal compound produced by Lactobacillus plantarum AF1 isolated from kimchi. Int J Food Microbiol 139(1\u0026ndash;2):56\u0026ndash;63\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Probiotic, Postbiotic, Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, Fermented Food","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6089267/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6089267/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study aimed to investigate the subspecies diversity of 10 \u003cem\u003eLactiplantibacillus plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains isolated from various fermented foods by RAPD-PCR analysis. Moreover, their technological features such as growth in different temperatures, NaCl concentration, and proteolytic properties were evaluated. The probiotic, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains and their postbioptic characteristics compared with Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG as a commercial reference strain. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to group strains according to their responses to the following variables: microbial strains. RAPD-PCR results confirmed subspecies diversity of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains. In-vitro technological assays indicate similarity of ten strains. Their survival under exposure to low pH and bile salts were determined around 41.12\u0026ndash;81.6% and 97.41-116.04%, respectively. The evaluation of aggregation, and hydrophobicity properties of cells of \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e strains demonstrated similar cell surface characteristics. In addition to more survival under simulated gastrointestinal conditions, postbiotics derived from \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e KMC45 isolated from jug cheese exhibited greater antioxidant and antibacterial activity than \u003cem\u003eL. rhamnosus\u003c/em\u003e strain. Finally, \u003cem\u003eL. plantarum\u003c/em\u003e KMC45 was isolated from jug cheese in PCA analysis was determined as the closest strain to the commercial probiotic strain and proposed as a new candidate for functional foods as probiotic starter culture.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Comparison of probiotic potential, antimicrobial, antioxidant and technological characteristics of various Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strains isolated from fermented foods","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-03-05 13:59:33","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6089267/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"d5df55f1-ce79-4a1f-b62d-a8c930dec168","owner":[],"postedDate":"March 5th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-08-07T06:54:03+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-03-05 13:59:33","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-6089267","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-6089267","identity":"rs-6089267","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}