%0 Journal Article
%T Immobilization Technologies in Probiotic Food Production
%A Gregoria Mitropoulou
%A Viktor Nedovic
%A Arun Goyal
%A Yiannis Kourkoutas
%J Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism
%D 2013
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2013/716861
%X Various supports and immobilization/encapsulation techniques have been proposed and tested for application in functional food production. In the present review, the use of probiotic microorganisms for the production of novel foods is discussed, while the benefits and criteria of using probiotic cultures are analyzed. Subsequently, immobilization/encapsulation applications in the food industry aiming at the prolongation of cell viability are described together with an evaluation of their potential future impact, which is also highlighted and assessed. 1. Introduction Probiotics have rapidly gained interest in the area of self-care and complementary medicine under the general term ¡°functional foods.¡± Modern consumers are increasingly interested in their personal health and particularly in foods which are capable of preventing and/or curing illness. Microbes have been used for years in food and alcoholic fermentations but only recently have undergone scientific scrutiny to examine their possible health benefits. The word ¡°probiotic¡± comes from the Greek words ¡°pro¡± and ¡°biotic,¡± meaning ¡°for the life.¡± The concept of ¡°probiotics¡± appeared a long time ago. The Nobel laureate Elie Metchnikoff was the first microbiologist in the beginning of the 20th century who suggested that the longevity of Bulgarian peasants could be related to their large consumption of sour milk containing Lactobacillus bulgaricus. The most commonly used definition for probiotics comes from Fuller in 1989 defining that ¡°probiotics are live microbial food supplements, which beneficially affect the host animal by improving its intestinal microbial balance¡± [1]. Salminen et al. [2] altered the term to ¡°probiotics are microbial cell preparations or components of microbial cells that have a beneficial effect on the health and well-being of the host.¡± According to this definition, probiotics are not necessary to be viable, as nonviable forms have also been proved to provide health effects [3]. Today, the term ¡°probiotic¡± refers to ¡°live microorganisms which, administered in adequate amounts, confer a beneficial physiological effect on the host,¡± according to the Food and Agriculture Organization and World Health Organization [4]. A variety of microorganisms have been studied for potential probiotic effects. Most microbial strains with probiotic activity belong primarily to Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium genera. However, the potential probiotic roles of other microbes are also under investigation. Table 1 presents the most common microorganisms investigated for probiotic properties. Table
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/jnme/2013/716861/