116 ISSN 0026-2617, Microbiology, 2018, Vol. 87, No. 1, pp. 116–126. © Pleiades Publishing, Ltd., 2018. Isolation and Evaluation of Probiotic Potential of Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from Poultry Intestine 1 M. Sh. R. Rajoka a, *, H. F. Hayat b , S. Sarwar b , H. M. Mehwish c , F. Ahmad a , N. Hussain c , S. Z. H. Shah b , M. Khurshid c , M. Siddiqu d , and J. Shi d a Key Laboratory for Space Bioscience and Space Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, 710072 People’s Republic of China b Institute of Microbiology, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Punjab, 38000 Pakistan c Institute of Biotechnology, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Punjab, 38000 Pakistan d Department of Neonatology, The First Affiliated Hospital, College of Medicine, Xi’an, Shaanxi, 710072 People’s Republic of China *e-mail: shahidrajoka@yahoo.com Received June 22, 2017 Abstract⎯The gut is a source of lactic acid bacteria with remarkable functional and technologies properties as well as a potential source of probiotics. In the present study, 13 strains of Lactobacillus were isolated from poultry intestine and identified according to their 16S rDNA sequences, as well as the evaluation of their pro- biotic potential. The probiotic properties were tested in aspects of antibiotic susceptibility, antimicrobial activity, exopolysaccharide production, lysozyme tolerance, gut condition tolerance (low pH, bile salt toler- ance) and adhesion to human colorectal adenocarcinoma cell line (Caco-2). Most isolates were resistance to streptomycin (10 μg/mL), gentamicin (10 μg/mL), kanamycin (30 μg/mL), penicillin (10 μg/mL) and chlor- amphenicol (30 μg/mL). Isolates shows strong abilities to adhere to Caco-2 cell in the range of (76 to 85%). Isolates SHA101 to SHA113 showed high survival rate under gastrointestinal tract condition (>80%), indicat- ing their potential in application of probiotics. The results of these tests indicate that the lactic acid bacteria isolated from poultry intestine have potential use as probiotic in various products. Keywords: lactic acid bacteria, probiotic, poultry, microbiota DOI: 10.1134/S0026261718010150 The gut microbiota is the principal bacteria reser- voir in animals. There is a balance of pathogenic and beneficial bacteria in gut of healthy broiler. When a balance does exit, the broiler achieve to its maximum development efficacy, conversely if stress is imposed the beneficial microbiota tend to reduced and it may result in a high exposure to illnesses (Blajman et al., 2015). A common rehearsal in broiler industry is the feedstuff supplement along with the antibiotic to improve the growth performance, but this practice has been retained under inquiry due to the occurrence of small levels of antibiotics in broiler meat and the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in meat (Gar- cia-Hernandez et al., 2016). Therefore the use of native lactic acid bacteria with probiotic potential could provide an substitute for the prevention of ani- mal’s illness (Tavakoli et al., 2017). The probiotic are defines as the living microbial food supplement that positively affect the host by improving the gut micro- bial balance (FAO/WHO 2001). The main criteria for selection of probiotic bacteria are; antimicrobial activ- ity, antibiotic resistance, lysozyme resistance, adher- ence to intestinal cell lines, acid tolerance, bile toler- ance, phenotypic and genotypic stability and pattern of carbohydrate utilization. Various investigations on lactic acid bacteria have reported wide range of health stimulating properties inducing the host gut microbial balance (Riaz Rajoka et al., 2017; Shahid Riaz et al., 2015). The lactic acid bacteria are catalase negative, gram positive and rod shape organisms with lactic acid as a metabolic end product of carbohydrate fermenta- tion and they can be found in different environment such as water, animal, human gut and food (Ahmed, 2003). Some reports indicated that the Lactobacilli strains carrying antibiotic resistance genes can be transferred to other bacteria in host gut. Therefore, the evaluation of the antibiotic resistance properties of probiotics is also important. Also, the characteristic relating to safety, survival in host gut and colonization abilities is important for evaluating the proposed pro- biotic bacteria (Tejero-Sariñena et al., 2012; Lavilla- Lerma et al., 2013). In livestock production the moni- toring pressure has restricted the antibiotic usage and 1 The article is published in the original. EXPERIMENTAL ARTICLES