Does kefir interact with pig's microbial gut? Preliminary study on pig's faeces.


  • Ninane, V. , Wavreille, J. , Planchon, V. & Berben, G. (2010). Does kefir interact with pig's microbial gut? Preliminary study on pig's faeces. Poster in: 2nd TNO Beneficial Microbes Conference, Noordwijkerhout, The Netherlands, 15-17 March 2010.
Type Poster
Year 2010
Title Does kefir interact with pig's microbial gut? Preliminary study on pig's faeces.
Event name 2nd TNO Beneficial Microbes Conference
Event location Noordwijkerhout, The Netherlands
Label 643
Recnumber 508
Event date 15-17 March 2010
Abstract Kefir is a fermented milk with healthy reputation that includes lactic acid bacteria and yeasts. Some Lactobacillus strains isolated from kefir show, in vitro, interesting properties for probiotics application in the traditional way of preventing or treating gut microflora disorders. The aim of this work was to determine in vivo, by microbial enumeration of pig faeces, the potentialities of kefir to interact with the gut microflora. Traditional kefir, prepared by incubation of milk with kefir KJ grains (10 % w/v), was given daily to 2 months old pigs fed with a standard fattening diet. The amount of kefir given daily per pig, 500 ml, provided an extra microbial intake of about 1010 lactobacilli, 1011 lactic acid streptococci and 109 yeasts in term of colony forming unit (CFU). Faeces of 4 pigs were collected after 2 and 3 weeks of kefir feeding and after 4 and 8 weeks of kefir starvation. Faeces were compared for total anaerobes, lactobacilli, lactic acid streptococci, coliforms and yeasts content determined by plate counts. As no difference in microbial counts were observed between faeces collected after 2 and 3 weeks of kefir feeding and between faeces collected after 4 and 8 weeks of kefir starvation, it was assumed that microbial flora was stabilised within those two feeding periods (with and without kefir). Values within those feeding periods were therefore pooled and their geometric means were compared. The number of total anaerobes and this of lactobacilli were unchanged under the two feeding periods: they stay around 109 CFU per gram of faeces. In contrast, the number of lactic acid streptococci, the number of coliforms and this of yeasts were significantly modified (p < 0.05): they turned respectively from 1.3x107, 4.1x106 and 5.3x103 CFU.g-1 with kefir to 4.6x105, 4.8x105 and 2.6x104 CFU.g-1 without kefir. The enhancement of lactic acid streptococci and of coliforms observed under kefir feeding is expected to be the expression of a modification in the microbial balance of the gut flora. It however could also be the expression of a lactose adaptation of some commensal bacteria (i.e. Enterococcus faecalis), resulting in a better growth on these culture media for which the carbohydrate source is lactose. Nevertheless, kefir had an indisputable effect on the microbial balance by lowering the charge of yeasts.
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Authors Ninane, V., Wavreille, J., Planchon, V., Berben, G.