3.9. Viability of the Probiotic Strain

The viability assessment was performed for the co-microencapsulated samples before and after the freeze-drying process, until the 21 days of storage, at 4 °C. To count the L. casei 431^® probiotic culture, the pour plate technique was considered. The viability followed the assessment of the number of colony-forming units by cultivation on the MRS agar, after incubation at 37 °C, for 48 h, under aerobic conditions. The counts were expressed as colony-forming units (CFU) per g DW, Enache et al. [38].