105 Indian J. Dairy Sci. 68(2), 2015 Abstract Worldwide there is a huge demand for fermented dairy products incorporated with probiotics and herbs. The commercial success of these products mainly depends on their taste and appeal which are affected by storage conditions employed. In the present study, changes in sensory, physico-chemical characteristics and probiotic counts of Aloe barbadensis Miller supplemented probiotic lassi (APL) stored at 5±1°C were evaluated. During 12 days of storage period, probiotic counts decreased from 8.4 log cfu/mL on initial day to 8.0 cfu/mL on 12 th day. pH of APL gradually decreased while wheying-off increased progressively throughout the storage. Scores of all sensory attributes decreased to below 7 after 9 days of storage, minimum level of acceptance set on nine-point hedonic scale. APL was rejected after 9 days of storage by the sensory panelists owing to its unacceptable sensory quality. PCA reduced eight original variables into two principal components which accounted for 99.937% of the total variations. Instrumental wheying-off (-ve) and pH (-ve) were loaded heavily on principal component 1 indicating strong relation among these variables. Correlation analysis also revealed that instrumental wheying-off and pH were strongly dependent on each other with highest Pearson's correlation coefficient (r=-0.962, p<0.01). Keywords : Aloe vera, lassi, probiotics, shelf-life, principal component analysis Introduction Probiotics are the "live microorganisms that, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host" (FAO/WHO, 2002). Health benefits attributed to intake of probiotics include alleviation of lactose intolerance, suppression of cancer, reduction in serum cholesterol concentrations, improved gastrointestinal immunity, prevention of urinary tract infections, management of food allergies and prevention of diabetes, etc. (Chapman et al., 2011). Probiotic cultures especially Lactobacillus group have had a long association with dairy products. Among the Lactobacillus group, species Lactobacillus paracasei is a common inhabitant of the human intestinal tract and also listed in the 'Inventory of microorganisms with documented history of use in human food' (Mogensen et al., 2002). Different strains of L. paracasei have been found naturally in fermented vegetables, milk and meat. Selected strains of this species are also used in Cheddar cheese, yoghurt, Kefir and other fermented milks (Chiang and Pan, 2012). Aloe barbadensis Miller (Aloe vera), an herb of the family Aloaceae, is considered to be the most biologically active of the approximately 420 species of Aloe found to date. Aloe vera harbours many biologically active constituents including vitamins, minerals, saccharides, amino acids, anthraquinones, enzymes, lignin, saponins, phytosterols and salicylic acids (Foster et al., 2011). Several research reports credit Aloe vera with health benefits namely antitumor, antidiabetic, healing wounds and burns, treatment of ulcers, hypolipidemic, immunomodulatory and antimicrobial properties, etc. (Hussain et al., 2013). A research conducted by Sinnott et al. (2007) proved that Aloe polysaccharides can be utilized better by human colonic bacteria indicating its potential as prebiotic. Increased interests of today's consumers towards "natural health" have propelled the consumption of Aloe vera and a considerable portion of today's functional food market consists of Aloe vera used as a supplement. Besides their functionality and nutrition, shelf-life of the functional foods plays an important role in their marketing. RESEARCH ARTICLE Effect of storage on sensory quality, pH, wheying-off and probiotic count of lassi supplemented with Aloe barbadensis Miller juice Shaik Abdul Hussain, G. R. Patil, Vidhu Yadav and R. R. B. Singh Received : June 2014 / Accepted : December 2014 Shaik Abdul Hussain (), G. R. Patil, Vidhu Yadav and R. R. B. Singh Dairy Technology Division, National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal Sanjay Gandhi Institute of Dairy Technology, Patna, India Shaik Abdul Hussain Dairy Technology Division, National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal E-mail: abdulndri@gmail.com