Effect of Green Tea and EGCG on the Growth Rate and Cell Density of the Probiotic Bacteria Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lactobacillus gasseri

Abstract

Green tea and probiotic bacteria have been reported to have beneficial health effects individually. The purpose of this study was to determine if green tea (GT) or epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate (EGCG), the main flavonoid component of GT, would stimulate the growth rate and increase the cell density in planktonic cultures of the probiotic bacterial strains Lactobacillus acidophilus NCFM (L. acid.) and Lactobacillus gasseri ATCC 33323 (L. gas.). Aqueous GT and EGCG extracts were prepared and matched for total phenol content. Growth rate was determined using a 96‐well microtiter plate assay. Cell density was assessed via optical density at 600nm. GT (1, 2, 10, 20, 30 and 40%) and EGCG (1, 2 and 10%) enhanced the maximum specific growth rate (MSGR) of L. acid. vs. the control. GT (4, 10, 20, 30, and 40%) and EGCG (1, 2, 4, 10, and 20%) also enhanced the MSGR of L. gas. relative to the control. GT (10 and 30%) and EGCG (1% only) increased the cell density of both L. acid. and L. gas. relative to the control. In summary, in preliminary results, GT and EGCG increased the growth rate and final cell densities of both L. acid. and L. gas., suggesting that combinations of probiotic cultures with tea components may promote survival, growth or activity in the gastrointestinal tract. This project was supported by North Carolina State University, the NC Dairy Foundation, and the Southeast Dairy Foods Research Center.

Green tea extracts alleviate acetic acid‐induced oral inflammation and reconstruct oral microbial balance in mice

“…GTE exhibited a profound enhancement on the abundance of Lactobacillus, aligning with the findings obtained from in vitro experiments conducted by Story et al Specifically, their study confirmed that GTE promotes the growth of L. acidophilus and L. gasseri by augmenting both the growth rates and cell densities of these bacterial strains (Story et al, 2009). As for the functionalities of Lactobacillus, a double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial provided evidence that Lactobacilli could effectively mitigate gingivitis and plaque in patients with moderate to severe gingivitis.…”

“…In terms of modulating probiotics, Zhang et al (2013) found that GTE significantly increased the abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Bifidobacterium in vitro. It was also shown that GTE enhanced the growth rates and cell densities of probiotics Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lactobacillus gasseri in vitro (Story et al, 2009). Despite the wealth of research, current investigations into the effects of GTE on oral microbiota primarily rely on in vitro models or are limited to specific microorganisms.…”

In-vitro screening of compatible synbiotics and (introducing) “prophybiotics” as a tool to improve gut health

“…However, our results demonstrate that supplementation of green tea extracts at higher doses can inhibit the growth of the LAB strains used. In contrast, Story et al ( 2009 ) found that the growth of L. acidophilus and L. gasseri was increased even at higher concentrations of green tea supplementation. Moreover, several studies have reported that the count of Lactobacillus starter cultures in yoghurt is increased with green tea supplementation (Lim 2017 ; Marhamatizadeh et al 2013 ; Najgebauer-Lejko 2014 ).…”