Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Arquivo Brasileiro de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, 1(66), p. 93-100, 2014
DOI: 10.1590/s0102-09352014000100014
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Lactobacillus spp. isolated from different portions of chickens' gastrointestinal tract were evaluated concerning their ability to survive in a water-in-oil (W/0) emulsion containing sesame and sunflower oil. After sixty days of emulsion storage under refrigeration, three of five strains tested survived in number equal to or higher than 10(6)cfu/g. Lactobacillus reuteri 2M14C, which presented the highest survival in W/O emulsion (10(7)cfu/g), was tested for its capacity to resist throughout the passage through gnotobiotic mice gastrointestinal tract and for the ability to stimulate murine peritoneal macrophages phagocytosis. This strain remained at a number above 10(9)cfu/g feces during ten days of monoassociation, and monoassociated mice showed phagocytic activity significantly greater than the germ-free controls (P<0.05). The results suggest that the formulation can be used to incorporate viable Lactobacillus spp. cells in animal feed. Moreover, the results suggest that L. reuteri 2M14C is a strong candidate to be incorporated in probiotic formulations for use in chicken.