Influence of the Microalga Chlorella vulgaris on the Growth and Metabolic Activity of Lactobacillus spp. Bacteria

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the algaeChlorella vulgarison the growth, acidifying activity, proportion of lactic acid isomers, and enzymatic profile ofLactobacillusbrevis(LOCK 0944, LOCK 0980, LOCK 0992, and MG451814) isolated from vegetable silages. The results indicated that adding algae at concentrations of 0.1% (w/v) and 1.5% (w/v) to theLactobacillusspp. growth medium accelerated the growth of bacteria and thus shortened their phase of logarithmic growth. The acidifying activity of the testedLactobacillus brevisincreased with an increased concentration of algae.Lactobacillusspp. cultured in the presence ofChlorella vulgarisshowed higher production ofl-lactic acid and lowerd-lactic acid production. Moreover, the addition of algae changed the enzymatic activity of lactic acid bacteria; for instance,Lactobacillus brevisLOCK 0980 demonstrated more enzymatic activity of valine arylamidase, alpha-galactosidase, and alpha-glucosidase. CombiningLactobacillus breviswith the algaeChlorella vulgarisallows for the creation of innovative, functional products which confer favorable properties to the final product and open new horizons for the food industry.