Abstract
Encapsulated Lactobacillus casei ATCC 393 was prepared by extrusion technology with rice shell powder and alginate followed by drying at 4°C. Drying at 4°C was beneficial to the survival of L. casei ATCC 393 compared with freeze drying. Trehalose had a positive effect on the survival of dried L. casei ATCC 393; the live cell numbers remained over 107 cfu/g after 8 weeks of storage at 4°C. Survival of L. casei ATCC 393 decreased with the increase of relative humidity (from 33 to 97%) while the immobilization technique protected cells from adverse gastric conditions (pH 1.2) by the survival ratio of 89%.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors are indebted to the financial support from NSFC (No. 30670566) and the ISTCP (No. 2006DFA33150).