## 5. Probiotic Strains Used in Yogurt and Related Probiotic Milk Beverages and Their Health Benefits
The complete genomic sequence has been published by Altermann et al. [246]. This strain is of human origin and was isolated and characterized by Gilliland et al. [247]. This probiotic was reviewed by Sanders and Klaenhammer [248]. Health benefits provided by _L. acidophilus_ NCFM include antimicrobial activity against foodborne pathogens, in vitro evidence for adherence to human cells, possible ability to assimilate cholesterol from lab growth media, ability to survive within the gastrointestinal tract and to be isolated in human feces, possess active lactose to possibly assist with lactose digestion, beneficially effect colonization in the small bowel, decreasing potentially harmful microbial activities related to cancer developmentin the intestine, improve immune response when combined with other yogurt cultures to oral antigens, potentially controlling urogenital infections in women, potentially reducing incidence of diarrhea when combined with other probiotics, and protecting against systemic infections [248]. _Lactobacillus acidophilus_ LA-5 provides many health benefits and has been incorporated into food and dietary supplements since 1979 [249]. This strain is frequently investigated with _Bifidobacterium animalis_ subsp. _lactis_ BB-12 which will be discussed below. When combining _L. acidophilus_ LA-5 with _B. animalis_ subsp. _lactis_ BB-12, improved suppression of _Helicobacter pylori_ infections [250], improved relief from chronic constipation [251], reduced symptoms and inflammation from ulcerative colitis [252], better recovery to colonic surgery as part of an optimization package [253], improved glycemic control and antioxidant status in patients with Type 2 diabetes [254,255], and reduced oxidative stress [256] have been reported. _L. acidophilus_ LA-5, _B. animalis_ subsp. _lactis_ BB-12, and _L. casei_ TMC incorporated into milk reduced total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in mild hypercholesterolemia study volunteers [257]. _L. acidophilus_ LA-5 produces lactacin B bacteriocin (peptides that inhibit certain other types of bacteria within the same environment) in the presence of yogurt starter cultures [258]. Furthermore, _L. acidophilus_ LA-5 can produce conjugated linoleic acid in supplemented cheese whey [259] and attenuate obesity [260]. _Lactobacillus heleticus_ has been used as a probiotic in yogurt. Zhou et al. [39] manufactured yogurt using _L. heleticus_ H9 as an adjunct starter culture and found shortened fermentation time, increased richness of volatile flavor compounds, production of fermented milk antihypertensive peptides Val-Pro-Pro and Ile-Pro-Pro, but lower sensory scores compared to their control yogurt. Kajimoto et al. [261] manufactured a liquid yogurt that contains lactotriopeptides and the starters _L. heleticus_ and _Saccharomyces cerevisiae_, and found that consumption of this product decreased systolic and diastolic blood pressure significantly more than the placebo group in mild hypertensive subjects in a placebo-controlled, double-blind study. Yamamura et al. [262] reported that milk fermented with _L. heleticus_ strain CM4 may improve sleep in healthy elderly Japanese subjects. _Lacticaseibacillus casei_ (formerly _Lactobacillus casei_) DN-114001 (_L. casei_ strain CNCM I-1518 or _L. casei_ Immunitas(r) is used in the probioticic yogurt-like drink DanActive (Actimel) and has been patented [263]. _L. casei_ DN-114001 was effective in increasing fecal _Bifidobacterium_ counts but decreasing fecal _Clostridium_ counts in children [264] and may be effective in reducing atopic dermatitis in children [264,265]. Agarwal et al. [266] reported that _L. casei_ DN-114001 was effective in controlling diarrhea in people from developing countries and using _L. casei_ DN-114001 as a starter for producing dahi was also effective. Guillemard et al.