HEENA CHOUDHARY, DIPJYOTI CHAKRABORTY, ATUL SHARMA, JATINDRA KUMAR PRADHAN, RISHI KUMAR BEHL, POOJA SHARMA, ANJALI KANWAL AND RAJ SINGH
Department of Biosciences and Biotechnology, Banasthali Vidyapith, Newai, Tonk-304 022 (Rajasthan), India *(e-mail: dr.rajsingh09@gmail.com; Mobile: 9897990346)
(Received: October 29, 2024; Accepted: December 13, 2024)
ABSTRACT
The research investigated the isolation and identification of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from fermented flour of finger millet (Eleusine coracana) flour to assess its potential for developing probiotic foods.The study involved two selective media (de Man Rogosa and Nutrient Agar) to isolate the most abundant bacteria from the millet flour. The isolates were tested for various traits such as gram staining, biochemical properties and morphology. Additionally, the probiotic potential of the isolates was assessed by evaluating their tolerance to acidic conditions, bile, NaCl, phenol and various antibiotics (e.g., tetracycline, ampicillin and ciprofloxacin).Based on these evaluations, five bacterial isolates were selected, and their 16S rDNA gene sequences were analyzed for identification. The bacterial isolates exhibited homology with Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens and Brevibacterium sp. Theunique accession numbers were obtained following the submission of sequences to NCBI. The findings suggest that these isolates have potential as probiotic strains, particularly for populations with lactose tolerance. This opens the possibility for developing novel probiotic food products derived from finger millet, a nutrient-dense, under-utilized crop.
Key words: Finger millet, fermentation, probiotics, prebiotics, isolation