POTENTIAL OF Nopalea cochenillifera (L.) Salm-Dyck TO ENHANCE THE PROBIOTIC VIABILITY OF LACTOBACILLI IN BIOPROCESSING AND TO MODULATE THE FECAL MICROBIOTA
Evaluate the potential of freeze-dried cladodes from N. cochenillifera as a functional matrix for probiotic and gut microbiota-modulating applications, investigating their use as a substrate for submerged fermentation with lactic acid bacteria to produce a functional food supplement, as well as their effects on microbial metabolic activity, cell stability, and human fecal fermentation.