An in vitro study on bacterial growth interactions and intestinal epithelial cell adhesion characteristics of probiotic combinations.

The aims of this study were to examine long-term growth interactions of five probiotic strains (Lactobacillus casei 01, Lactobacillus plantarum HA8, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, Lactobacillus reuteri ATCC 55730 and Bifidobacterium lactis Bb12) either alone or in combination with Propionibacterium jensenii 702 in a co-culture system and to determine their adhesion ability to human colon adenocarcinoma cell line Caco-2. Growth patterns of probiotic Lactobacillus strains were not considerably affected by the presence of P. jensenii 702, whereas lactobacilli exerted a strong antagonistic action against P.