Development of symbiotic yogurt with juçara pulp, Lactobacillus acidophilus La-5 and prebiotics

• Grant number: 13/04909-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): June 01, 2013
• Effective date (End): May 31, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Microbiology
• Principal Investigator: Elaine Cristina Pereira de Martinis
• Grantee: Patricia Carrasco Catanoze
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto (FCFRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

There is an increasing preference for healthy ready-to-eat foods, with a special interest in functional foods. Yogurt supplemented with probiotic micro-organisms or added prebiotics can be considered a functional food since it offers health benefits beyond its nutritional properties. Probiotics are viable micro-organisms that may confer benefits to the host and must be consumed in portions of food containing 108-109 CFU. The juçara fruit pulp (Euterpe edulis Mart.) is a potential functional food ingredient due to the presence of anthocyanin and it could be added to probiotic yogurts. This project aims to produce a probiotic yogurt with juçara pulp, with the addition or not of prebiotics. The survival of the probiotic micro-organism (L. acidophilus La-5) will be evaluated in the preparations, to find the best formulation of the functional yogurt. (AU)