INSTITUTUL NAÅ¢IONAL DE CERCETARE-DEZVOLTARE - ICECHIM

3. Chemistry in medical and pharmaceutical applications - P“IN VIVO” PREBIOTIC EFFECT OF ZYMOMONAS MOBILIS’ LEVANCristina Sturzoiu 1 , Anca Dinischiotu 1 , Ionelia Taranu 2 , Gheorghe Stoian 11 Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Biology, University ofBucharest, 91-95, Splaiul Independentei, sect. 5, Bucharest, ROMANIA2 National Research Development Institute for Animal Biology and Nutrition (IBNA), 1,Calea Bucuresti., Balotesti, Ilfov, ROMANIAA prebiotic is a non-digestible food 1 ingredient that selectively and beneficial affects host, by stimulating the activity ofcolon’s bacteria 2 , supports or favors the development of prebiotic microorganisms. Prebiotics are energy source assubstrates for Bifidus bacteria 2 who are involved in inhibition of many pathogenic bacteria. Also they improve thehealth by reducing the number of gastrointestinal tract pathogenic germs (Salmonella sp., E. coli orClostridium sp.) 3,4,5 . Literature data show that inulin and oligofructans are excellent prebiotics when they areadministered in vivo 6 . In this context, the aim of this study was to assess the prebiotic effect of levanproduced by Gram negative bacterium, Z. mobilis. Bacterial levan was administrated to Cobb 500hybrid broilers, in 1% and 3% concentrations during two weeks, consecutive with the administrationof pathogenic bacteria in the food. Our results show that the levan supplementation has a positiveinfluence on growth performance of experimental models. The weight gain remains increased up to28 days after the special treatment was stopped. Microbiological analysis revealed a significantreduction of pathogenic bacterial contamination, a small number of aerobic mesophilic bacteria anda little fungal infection into gastrointestinal tract.1. Jang K.H., Kang S.A., Cho Y.H., Kim Y.Y., Lee Y.J., Hon K.H., Seong K.H., Kim, et al, Prebiotic properties of Levan inrats, J. Microbiol. Biotechnol., 13, 348-353, 2003.2. Zdenka S.B., Martinov O.B., Knežević J, Miroslav M., In vitro ispitivanja uticaja inulina, kao prirodnogprebiotika, na kvantitativne mikrobiološke pokazatelje bifidogenog efekta, Medicinski pregled, 61, 3-4, 173-177, 2008.3. Kühn H., Wonde B., Rabsch W. , Reissbrodt R., Evaluation of Rambach agar for detection of Salmonella subspeciesI to VI,Appl Environ Microbiol., 60(2), 749–751, 1994.4. Hitchins A.D., Feng, P., Watkins, W.D., Rippey, S.C., Chandler L.A., Escherichia coli and the Coliform Bacteria, In,"Bacterial Analytical Manual" 8ThEdition, Revision A. Published and Distributed by AOAC International, 1-29, 1998.5. Zivkovic A. M., German B. J., Lebrilla C.B., Mills, Human milk glycobiome and its impact on the infantgastrointestinal microbiota, Biological Sciences Microbiology, 108, 14653-4658, 2011.6. Kolida S., Tuohy K., Gibson G. , Prebiotic effects of inulin and oligofructose, British J. of Nutrition, 87, S193 - S197, 2007.