UNAIR NEWS – All this time, probiotics are widely known for their myriad benefits, especially for health. Probiotics can be found naturally in the body of human, animals and plants. Probiotics have been used in the formula for making drugs, food, and cosmetic products. Its potential ability as a cholesterol level lowering, anti-allergic, even anti-cancer agent has been widely discussed through various studies.
Most probiotics are lactic acid bacteria (LAB) with unique properties because they are able to produce various bioactive compounds, such as bacteriocin, hydrogen peroxide, polysaccharides, short chain fatty acids, organic acids and other compounds. This bacterium also has various mechanisms that elevate the status of probiotics as microbiota resistance to several antibiotics and able to fight pathogenic microorganisms. It makes probiotics have the potential to be developed as complementary infection therapy.
Furthermore, the role of probiotics as an antioxidant has also been widely reported. Its symbiosis with various polysaccharide compounds such as oligosaccharides as prebiotics has led to an ideal symbiosis.
“Probiotics can utilize probiotics in their environment as nutrients and energy source both for growth and for their metabolic processes. That is why, probiotics live in habitats that are rich in fiber such as fruits, vegetables and sea products with acidic pH conditions, “said Dr. Isnaeni, MS., Apt., a lecturer of Faculty of Pharmacy UNAIR who did a lot of research related to probiotics.
The lecturer from Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry explained that antioxidants are compounds that can delay or prevent oxidation of cellular substrates and demonstrate the capacity to protect the human body against oxidative damage. Evidence has shown that probiotic bacteria present significant antioxidant capabilities both in vitro and in vivo. In this study, Dr. Isnaeni examined the effect of probiotic fermented milk on the profile of lycopene spectra in tomato paste.
“The combination of probiotic milk fermented products with extracts and fruit or vegetable juices and or any combinations has been reported beneficial for its antibacterial properties. The combination of probiotics and tomato juice or paste formulated in the form of microparticles turned out to show inhibitory activity against pathogenic bacteria, ” she said.
Apart from being consumed as fresh fruit, tomato paste can be combined with probiotic fermented milk to enhance its health benefits. Probiotic fermented milk is known to have many health benefits. In probiotic milk, antimicrobial, antioxidant, immunomodulatory and anti-cancer properties can be found, so the combination with tomato paste is expected to increase its health benefits.
In this study, Lactobacillus acidophillus, Lactobacillus bulgaricus , and Lactobacillus casei were used as probiotic multi cultures. It was found that the combination of probiotic milk-tomato paste at a ratio of 2: 8 was able to increase the highest lycopene content based on measurement results with a spectrophotometer. After determining the lycopene content, it turns out that the lycopene content in fermented LAB with tomato paste is greater than the content in tomato paste.
“The results of this study are very valuable information, especially in the development of probiotic milk formula and its combination with tomato paste as an antioxidant,” she stated. (*)
Author: Sukma Cindra Pratiwi
Editor : Khefti Al Mawalia
Isnaeni, Nailatul Hidayah, Utari Ardiningdyah, Izza Rahmi Hidayah. 2019. Profile Of Lycopene Uv-Spectra Of Lactic Acid Bacteria Fermented Milk-Tomato Paste. Scientific and Community Pharmacy Journal.
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