Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Properties of Probiotics: Insights from In Vitro Assays

Probiotics are microorganisms that provide health benefits at adequate doses and exhibit notable antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. These properties play crucial roles in combating chronic diseases linked to oxidative stress and antimicrobial resistance. This review aimed to summarize the antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of probiotics determined in in vitro studies and discuss mechanistic actions and analysis methods. The MEDLINE (PubMed), Web of Science, Scopus, Science Direct, and Embase databases were utilized. The included articles demonstrated the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of both isolated and food matrix-associated probiotics, with the most common genera being Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, Saccharomyces, and Streptococcus. Antioxidant activity was the most studied property, yielding varied results attributed to evaluation tests and probiotic strain. Antibacterial activity was consistently reported in all studies. Additionally, fermentation with probiotic microorganisms improved the content and bioaccessibility of bioactive compounds. In conclusion, analysis results highlight the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of probiotics reported in in vitro studies. They enhance bioactive content and bioaccessibility and produce novel beneficial metabolites during fermentation. These results reinforce the therapeutic promise of probiotics associated with plant matrices and indicate the need for clinical studies to confirm their efficacy in improving human health.