The Effect of Royal Jelly on Growth and Short-Chain Fatty Acid Production of Probiotic Bacteria and Activity of Bacterial Procarcinogenic Enzymes in Rat Faeces

The present study was done to evaluate the effect of three different royal jelly samples on the kinetic growth of two isolates of lactic bacteria: Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum. The results showed that the addition of royal jelly supported and improved the growth of L. acidophilus and B. bifidum. The highest count of L. acidophilus was 9.01 (log(10) cfu/mL) when 2% (w/v) of the royal jelly sample 3 was added to milk. The highest count of B. bifidum was 9.07 (log(10) cfu/mL) when 5% (w/v) of the royal jelly sample 1 was added to milk. Based on the obtained results, royal jelly showed the capability of prebiotic activity and increasing the activity of L. acidophilus and B. bifidum. Royal jelly promotes SCFAs productions which are believed to have an antitumor effect. The results showed the presence of significant synbiotic effect of fermented milk and royal jelly on the intestinal microflora. This effect is translated by the reduction in the faecal enzyme activities of beta-glucuronidase, arylsulphatase, and beta-gluconsidase which are involved in colon carcinogenesis.