Hindawi Publishing Corporation BioMed Research International Volume 2013, Article ID 418132, 14 pages http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/418132 Research Article Technological Aptitude and Applications of Leuconostoc mesenteroides Bioactive Strains Isolated from Algerian Raw Camel Milk Zineb Benmechernene, 1 Hanane Fatma Chentouf, 1 Bellil Yahia, 1 Ghazi Fatima, 1 Marcos Quintela-Baluja, 2 Pilar Calo-Mata, 2 and Jorge Barros-Velázquez 2 1 Laboratory of Applied Microbiology, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Oran University, B.P. 16, Es-Senia, 31100 Oran, Algeria 2 Department of Analytical Chemistry, Nutrition and Food Science, School of Veterinary Sciences/College of Biotechnology, University of Santiago de Compostela, R´ ua Carballo Calero s/n, Campus Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain Correspondence should be addressed to Zineb Benmechernene; b zineb@hotmail.com Received 14 June 2013; Revised 21 September 2013; Accepted 23 October 2013 Academic Editor: Denis Groleau Copyright © 2013 Zineb Benmechernene et al. his is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Two strains (B7 and Z8) of the Leuconostoc mesenteroides subspecies mesenteroides that were isolated from Algerian camel milk from an initial pool of 13 strains and demonstrated a high ability to inhibit the growth of Listeria spp. were selected and characterised at the phenotypic and genotypic levels. Probiotic proiling and inhibition spectra against food borne pathogens in mixed cultures were also investigated. he bacteriocin produced by L. mesenteroides strain B7 was identiied as leucocin B by speciic PCR. In vitro studies demonstrated that both Leuconostoc mesenteroides strains exhibited a marked probiotic proile, showing high survival at low pH (2- 3 and 4) in the presence of 0.5%, 1%, and 2% of bile salts and at pH 3 in the presence of 3 mg/mL pepsin. Susceptibility testing against antimicrobial agents was also performed for both strains. When tested in a mixed culture with Listeria innocua, Listeria ivanovii, or Staphylococcus aureus, strain B7 reduced the numbers of these species by 1.87, 1.78, and 1.38 log units, respectively. Consequently, these two strains were found to possess good probiotic properties in vitro and a high capacity for Listeria spp. inhibition in mixed cultures. herefore, these strains have a favourable technological aptitude and a potential application as novel probiotic starters. 1. Introduction Camel milk has antimicrobial activity and a good conser- vation aptitude. Barbour et al. [1] reported that camel milk inhibits some pathogenic bacteria because of several protec- tive proteins found in the milk, including lysozymes, lactop- eroxidase, lactoferrin, immunoglobulin, and vitamin C. For these reasons, Yagil et al. [2] support that pasteurisation is not essential for camel milk if the camels are in good health. Camel milk composition is less stable than milk from other animals. hese variations can be caused by many factors, such as geographical lactation, alimentary conditions, and the breed and age of the camel [3]. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from cow and goat milk have been well studied for both antimicrobial activity and bacteriocin production [4–6]. However, few studies have been conducted on the isolation and characterisation of LAB from camel milk [7–9] or on the antimicrobial activity [10–12]. Several LAB species produce a wide variety of antimicro- bials that can be used for food preservation. In a number of instances, the inhibitory activity of LAB could be attributed to metabolic end products such as hydrogen peroxide, diacetyl and organic acids, and bacteriocin [13]. Currently, LAB include (13) diferent bacterial genera: Lactobacillus, Leu- conostoc, Lactococcus, Enterococcus, Streptococcus, Pediococ- cus, Carnobacterium, Oenococcus, Weissella, Aerococcus, Tet- ragenococcus, Vagococcus, and Biidobacterium. hese bacte- ria are used primarily as starters in fermented food products where they can develop certain organoleptic characteristics and increase the time of conservation [14–17].