Catalog no 288110

Bacteria used for the inoculum were previously isolated from the cecal content of two 5-week commercial broiler chickens. Cecal and ileum (Meckel’s diverticulum to cecal tonsils) content from these birds was collected, and both sections were flushed with PBS. Epithelium and intestinal contents were homogenized, serially diluted, and plated on de Man Rogosa Sharpe (MRS) agar plates (Catalog no. 288110, Becton Dickinson and Co., Sparks, MD, USA) or tryptic soy (TS) agar plates (Catalog no. 211822, Becton Dickinson, Sparks, MD, USA) respectively to obtain one pure colony from each sample. The Bacillus isolate was selected as a direct-fed microbial (DFM) candidate in previous experiments based on its ability for in vitro degradation of carbohydrates found in soybean meal (SBM) that are poorly digested by poultry [11 ]. Both isolates were identified by 16S rRNA sequence analyses (Microbial ID Inc., Newark, DE, USA). The report showed that the strains were Lactobacillus salivarius (LS) and Bacillus licheniformis (BL). Aliquots of these isolates were made and used in the present study.

Ten lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were isolated from 10 34-week-old Hy-Line Brown backyard flock hens fed with a maize grain diet. Cecal and ileum (Meckel diverticulum to cecal tonsils) content from these birds was collected, and then, both sections were flushed with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). Epithelium and intestinal contents were briefly homogenized, serially diluted, and plated on de Man–Rogosa–Sharpe (MRS) agar plates (Catalog no. 288110, Becton Dickinson and Co., Sparks, MD 21152 USA) to obtain one pure colony from each sample. The isolates were identified by 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequence analyses (Microbial ID Inc., Newark, DE 19713, USA). The report showed that four of the strains were Lactobacillus johnsonii, three isolates were Weissella confusa, two Lactobacillus salivarius, and one as Pediococcus parvulus. Aliquots of the combined culture containing 10 selected LAB isolates were grown on MRS agar as a combined batch culture (LAM) and used in the present study.