*2.2. Preparation of Fermented Milk*

The samples of fermented milk were collected on the day of their manufacturing. Pasteurized milk was ultrafiltered, sterilized at 120 ◦C for 30 s and subjected to homogenization (APV, SPX Flow Technology, Crawley, UK). At this point, milk was inoculated with 0.6 mg/<sup>L</sup> *Lactobacillus acidophilus* NCFM ® and 0.2 mg/<sup>L</sup> *Lactobacillus delbrueckii* subs. *bulgaricus* and *Streptococcus thermophilus* (DUPONT DANISCO, Bologna, Italy) and the product was incubated in a maturation tank at 38 ◦C for 10 h. At the end, fermented milk (pH 4.5) was vigorously mixed breaking the clot, and brought to 20 ◦C to block the fermentation process.
