This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Other Versions of this Article: AEM.01763-06v1 73/1/179    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Pompei, A. Articles by Rossi, M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Pompei, A. Articles by Rossi, M. Agricola Articles by Pompei, A. Articles by Rossi, M.

Folate Production by Bifidobacteria as a Potential Probiotic Property

Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy,¹ Department of Chemistry, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy²

Received 26 July 2006/ Accepted 13 October 2006

The ability of 76 Bifidobacterium strains to produce folate was investigated. In order to evaluate folic acid productivity, bifidobacteria were cultivated in the folate-free semisynthetic medium SM7. Most of the tested strains needed folate for growth. The production and the extent of vitamin accumulation were not a function of species but were distinctive features of individual strains. Six strains among the 17 that grew without folate produced significantly higher concentrations of vitamin (between 41 and 82 ng ml^–1). The effects of exogenous folate and p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) concentrations on folate production were evaluated. In contrast to most of the other strains, the folate yield of B. adolescentis MB 239 was not negatively affected by either PABA or exogenous folic acid. Folate production by B. adolescentis MB 239 was studied in the pH range of the colonic environment, and a comparison of folate production on raffinose, lactose, and fructo-oligosaccharides, which belong to three important groups of fermentable intestinal carbon sources, was established. Differences in folate biosynthesis by B. adolescentis MB 239 were not observed as a function either of the pH or of the carbon source. Fecal culture experiments demonstrated that the addition of B. adolescentis MB 239 may increase the folate concentration in the colonic environment.

Published ahead of print on 27 October 2006.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Pompei, A., Cordisco, L., Amaretti, A., Zanoni, S., Raimondi, S., Matteuzzi, D., Rossi, M. (2007). Administration of Folate-Producing Bifidobacteria Enhances Folate Status in Wistar Rats. J. Nutr. 137: 2742-2746 [Abstract] [Full Text]