Functional lipid enriched probiotic cheese: Gastrointestinal stability and potential health benefits

Dairy products are ubiquitous foodstuffs with high consumer acceptance; this facilitates their supplementation with bioactive compounds, such as bioactive lipids. However, their incorporation is limited due to technological challenges and matrix interactions. But what about interactions with probiotics? Thus, this work sought to understand if a probiotic rich cheese fortified with bioactive coconut and avocado oils would be capable of modulating, in vitro, obesity related metabolism. The data showed that, after simulated GIT passage, the oils did not impact the probiotic viable counts and that 50–70% of relevant bioactive fatty acids reached the intestinal phase. Digested fractions also stimulated adipokines production (43–53%), reduced hepatocyte lipidic accumulation (>20%) and increased adipolysis (>50%) and had an anti-inflammatory effect upon macrophages. Based on these results, the proposed solution presented itself as a unique foodstuff capable of being an alternative for the development of a novel line of functional dairy products.