Abstract: To isolate and screen lactic acid bacteria with great probiotic performance from healthy forest musk deer feces, which have good potential to improve the health status of forest musk deer, and to evaluate the in vitro probiotic characteristics of isolates. Twelve isolates were obtained and identified by cell morphology and bacterial 16S rDNA sequencing. Their survival in low pH and bile salts, antagonistic activities against five target pathogens (Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1, Salmonella enteritidis ATCC 13076 and Arcanobacterium pyogenes LSN3), auto-aggregation and hydrophobicity, antibiotic susceptibility and resistance genotype, growth curve were evaluated. Five Lactiplantibacillus plantarum isolates and Pediococcus acidilactici isolate showed prominent probiotic potential than others. Specifically, these isolates survived at pH4, or in 0.5% bile salt (survival rate was more than 87 %); inhibited the target pathogens (inhibition zone was 17 mm~20 mm) and Arcanobacterium pyogenes LSN3 (inhibition zone was 14 mm~15 mm) ; possessed considerable auto-aggregation (53.1%~56.2%) and hydrophobicity (47.4?%~56.0%); resisted to streptomycin, ciprofloxacin and vancomycin, carried the vanX gene. They have the characteristics of rapid growth (the OD600 reached 7.1 and 9.0, respectively.). Our findings demonstrated that these six isolates could be?preliminarily determined as probiotic candidates, they might be excellent candidates for subsequent development of forest musk deer probiotics.

Key words: forest musk, lactic acid bacteria, isolate, identify, probiotic properties