Abstract

Background: Food-based delivery systems are essential for the practical application of probiotics. A key challenge in translating this technology is determining whether the bacteria remain viable and biologically active after being incorporated into a real food matrix and undergoing prolonged processing. This study evaluated whether Lactiplantibacillus plantarum Lp1 retains its immunomodulatory activity when incorporated into a ripened, semi-hard cheese matrix. Methods: Female BALB/c mice were assigned to three groups: Ovalbumin-induced pneumonia (OVA); OVA plus control cheese; and OVA plus Lp1 cheese. The cheese was ripened at a low temperature for 120 days and administered at a dose of 2 g per day for four weeks. Allergic airway inflammation was induced by OVA sensitization and intranasal challenge. The following were evaluated: viable Lp1 counts after ripening, cytokine gene expression in bronchoalveolar lavage cells and spleen, total IgE levels, and lung histopathology. Results: The number of viable Lp1 decreased during ripening but remained detectable in the final cheese product at 8.7 × 106 CFU/g, which corresponds to an estimated daily intake of 1.7 × 107 CFU/mouse. Bronchoalveolar lavage cells from the OVA plus Lp1 cheese group showed lower expression of selected inflammatory cytokine genes, including Il1b, Il13, and Tnf, as well as higher Il10 expression, compared to the OVA plus control cheese group. Lung histopathology suggested attenuation of OVA-induced airway inflammation. Serum total IgE levels did not differ significantly among groups. Conclusions: In this mouse model, cheese containing Lactiplantibacillus plantarum Lp1 retained the potential to modulate selected inflammation-related markers after 120 days of ripening. Although total serum IgE levels were unchanged, the findings should be interpreted together with other inflammatory outcomes. These results suggest that aged cheese may preserve the biological activity of functional lactic acid bacteria, although further studies are required to establish the translational relevance of these findings.

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