Viability and In Vitro Gastrointestinal Transit Tolerance of Multispecies Probiotic Combinations Incorporated into Orange Juice and Drinking Water

Little is known about how combining probiotics affects the storage survival and functional performance of individual probiotics when incorporated into non-dairy drinks. Viability of Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG (LG), Limosilactobacillus reuteri ATCC 55730 (LR), Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 (Bb), and Propionibacterium jensenii 702 (PJ), either alone or in multi-species combinations included in orange juice (OJ), were assessed during storage in refrigerated conditions and compared with bottled water (BW). The tolerance of probiotics included in refrigerated OJ to simulated gastrointestinal conditions was also examined. LG and LR viabilities were significantly higher in OJ than in BW (p ≤ 0.001), while the reverse was evident for PJ. Bb maintained high viability in both drinks. LG-PJ in both drinks and Bb-PJ in BW resulted in greater viabilities among the paired combinations compared to their respective monocultures when incorporated separately (p ≤ 0.001). The viability of LG in the LG-Bb-PJ combination improved significantly in BW compared with LG alone (p ≤ 0.001). OJ did not alter bacterial tolerance to simulated gastric juice but diminished tolerance to simulated intestinal juice (SIJ). In all combinations, tolerance of LG and LR to SIJ was improved, whereas tolerance of PJ declined significantly compared with respective monocultures (p ≤ 0.001). In conclusion, probiotic storage stability and gastrointestinal transit tolerance were species-dependent and affected by carrier type and combinations. These effects should be considered when formulating probiotic products.