Survival of probiotic lactobacilli in the upper gastrointestinal tract using an in vitro gastric model of digestion

► We investigated survival of Lactobacillus strains in the gastrointestinal tract. ► Water and milk were used as food matrices. ► Survival was evaluated in both logarithmic and stationary phase. ► An inverse relationship between bacterial count and pH decrease was found. ► Higher survival and lactic acid production were observed in stationary phase.