A bifidobacterium fermented egg white drink with different carbohydrate sources

Abstract

Probiotics have been shown to benefit human health, however, they are usually found in dairy products, which cannot be consumed by people with lactose intolerance or milk protein allergies. Egg white drink is a good alternative and might be a suitable carrier for probiotics. In this context, the usability of egg white drink for the fermentation by Bifidobacterium longum Bb46 and Bifidobacterium longum DSM 16603 and the effect of adding different carbohydrate sources (glucose, fructose and saccharose) was investigated. After 24 hours of fermentation, changes in pH, total cell count and protein profile were also examined. A reduction in pH was observed particularly when carbohydrate sources were added to egg white drink compared to control samples. Generally, the total cell count was greater than 8.3 log₁₀CFU/mL, and the cell count of B. longum DSM 16603 was considerably higher than B. longum Bb46 in egg white drink supplemented with glucose and saccharose. Following SDS protein profile analysis of all studied samples, ovalbumin, ovoflavoprotein, and ovomucoid were detected, although their associated bands were weaker when carbohydrates were added. To sum up, B. longum DSM 16603 can be applied for the production of fermented probiotic egg white drink in the presence of fructose, which might make the drink suitable for diabetics.