Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the probiotic potential of autochthonous Lactobacillus species isolated from buffalo calves against multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli. A total of 252 rectal swabs were collected from healthy neonatal buffalo calves under 30 days old from six districts of Andhra Pradesh, India in a completely randomized design from August 2019 to August 2021, of which 190 Lactobacillus strains were isolated based on cultural, morphological, biochemical and molecular tests. Out of 190 isolates, 57 showed high levels of auto-aggregation (> 80.00%) and hydrophobicity (> 60.00%) and 51 of the 57 isolates had a zone of inhibition greater than 15.00 mm in diameter against multidrug-resistant E. coli in an Agar well diffusion assay. Among the 51 isolates, 36 were found to be acid and bile tolerant and showed varying levels of sensitivity to antibiotics such as erythromycin, clindamycin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, and ampicillin. Among the 36 isolates, Limosilactobacillus reuteri 178, L. reuteri 209, L. fermentum 182, L. fermentum 211, and Lactiplanti-bacillus plantarum 34 were non-hemolytic, and none of the isolates were able to hydrolyse gelatine. Therefore, these five autochthonous Lactobacillus species may be used in probiotic or synbiotic formulations against multidrug resistant E. coli in buffalo calves.