Carvalho, A. SofiaSilva, JoanaHo, P.Teixeira, PaulaMalcata, F. X.Gibbs, P.2011-10-222011-10-2220070026-3788http://hdl.handle.net/10400.14/6759To elucidate the relationship between death of freeze-dried cells of Lactobacillus bulgaricus during storage and decrease in powder solubility, the effect of milk precipitation during rehydration of freeze-dried Lb. delbrueckiissp. bulgaricus upon death of these cells throughout storage, via addition of various carbohydrates to the drying medium was studied. The degree of survival of freeze-dried Lb. bulgaricus was found to be directly proportional to the square root of the absorbance of the supernatant. A darker powder resulted when most of the microorganism had died. A tentative explanation for the insolubility observed when the viability of the cells decreased is based on an increase in the extent of non-enzymatic browning (Maillard reactions), as a result of cell death. Results obtained throughout this study might represent a helpful tool towards development of a novel, straightforward, shortcut method for monitoring the viability of freeze-dried samples during storageengjournal article