Yoghurt has been known as an excellent source for delivering viable lactic acid bacteria (LAB) in concentrations providing benefits to the human host and microbiome. Different gastrointestinal tract (GIT) simulators have been developed and are successfully used to determine the viability of LAB from fermented dairy products in vitro studies. Commercial yoghurts were tested for digestibility using the GIT IT system Labfors 5 (INFORS HT, Switzerland). The length for both the gastric phase and the small intestinal phase was 120 min each. Yoghurt LAB colony-forming units were analysed prior to the GIT simulation test, as well as after the simulation test. The survival rate of LAB was evaluated based on the differences in the viable LAB count at the beginning and at the end of the experiment. Tested yoghurts’ LAB were tolerated in the simulated gastric and small intestinal phases. Samples collected prior to and after the intestinal phase revealed that LAB had adapted and started to grow within 120 min. Our results showed the ability of LAB to recover in the intestinal phase which has been explained by the food matrix, which protects the bacteria from the elimination effect of intestinal secretions. In addition, differences in survival rates of LAB significantly influenced the overall LAB colony-forming units in the gastrointestial tract. The chemical composition of the product has an influence on the survival rate of LAB, and it should be studied more thoroughly. In vitro studies are quite different from the assay in vivo studies; however, this information provides significant data about the viability of LAB from regularly consumed products and helps to modulate the influence of LAB on human microbiota.

In recent years, the demand for organic fermented dairy products has been growing. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are of major interest in the food industry due to their ability to form the quality and functionality of fermented products. A significantly higher LAB cell count is presented in organic (ORG) fermented products such as yoghurt and kefir, than their conventional (CONV) counterparts. There is still a lack of information on the possible explanation and evidence of ORG milk as a better medium for LAB growth. The aim of the present review is to summarise the results of research articles on the milk compounds and their effect on LAB growth, and to identify differences between ORG and CONV milk that may provide a plausible explanation for their influence on LAB growth in ORG milk. The monographic method was used in this study. According to the previous research, significant differences were established in a content and range of carbohydrates, nitrogen sources, fats, macro elements and microelements, as well bioactive compounds in ORG and CONV milk. The composition of ORG milk may have potential benefits for the development of LAB due to the higher concentration of peptides and long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in it.

Q fever is a widespread disease affecting reproduction in dairy cattle. Several risk factors can increase the possibility of the herd becoming infected and the persistence of infection. The aim of this study was to characterise the dynamics of C. burnetii infection in affected herds and to evaluate reproduction problems and risk factors using a questionnaire within infected and infection-free dairy herds. In total, 25 farms that were serologically positive or shedding C. burnetii DNA in milk and 14 C. burnetii infection-free farms in Latvia answered the questionnaire. Ten positive herds were studied by testing individual blood and milk samples from up to 10 animals at two times separated by 7.5 to 13 months. The number of serologically positive and suspicious animals was higher in the second sampling even though several animals were culled. In the positive herds, the percentage of dystocia, stillborn calves and abortions during the last year was significantly (p=0.001; 0.01; 0.005, respectively) higher than in the negative herds. Several significant factors were found for the presence of Q fever infection, such as the herd size, the regional population density of ruminants, artificial ventilation systems, and frequent farm visitors. Deratisation was less practised in the negative farms and the presence of ticks was observed more often in the negative farms. Only two identified risk factors can be mitigated – the ventilation system and frequent farm visitors. The other factors cannot be changed arbitrarily but they have to be taken into account by decision makers.