Cultivation of Lactic Acid Bacteria and Evaluation of the Antimicrobial Potential of Partially Purified Bacteriocin-like Inhibitory Substances against Cariogenic and Food Pathogens

One of the major challenges in the pharmaceutical industry is the search for new antimicrobial compounds that can replace antibiotics. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) can produce bacteriocin-like inhibitory substances (BLIS) that have a bacteriostatic or bactericidal effect against different bacterial genera, including those responsible for dental caries. Among the pathological processes of microbial etiology, the dental caries stands out, whose main pathogenic agent is the species Streptococcus mutans, present in about 80-90% of the oral cavity. In this context, this study aimed to produce and semi-purify BLIS from Lactobacillus plantarum ST16 Pa, Bifidobacterium lactis BL 04, Lactococcus lactis CECT-4434 and Lactobacillus lactis 27 as well as to assess their antimicrobial potential against important dental caries causing pathogens like S. mutans UA159, Listeria innocua 2711, Carnobacterium maltaromaticum CECT 4020, Staphylococcus aureus CECT 239, and Escherichia coli ATCC 25922. While BLIS from L. plantarum ST16 Pa and L. lactis CECT-4434 were able to inhibit the growth only of S. mutans UA159, that which was produced by B. lactis BL 04 did so against all bioindicator strains; therefore, this suggests that its application could be important in the control of cariogenic microorganisms.