**Monika Garbowska 1,\*, Antoni Pluta <sup>2</sup> and Anna Berthold-Pluta <sup>2</sup>**


Received: 11 February 2019; Accepted: 4 April 2019; Published: 23 April 2019

**Abstract:** The objective of this study was to determine the proteolytic activity of bacterial strains from the genus *Lactobacillus* and their capability in producing peptide inhibitors of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) in cheese models prepared with their addition. After 5 weeks of ripening, all cheese models studied were characterized by a high ability of angiotensin convertase inhibition which exceeded 80%. The use of the adjunct bacterial cultures from the genus *Lactobacillus* contributed to lower IC50 values compared with the value determined for the control cheese model. The proteolytic activity of model cheeses varied in their increase through the period of ripening, with changes in values dependent on the adjunct lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strain used for cheesemaking. Starting from the first week of ripening, the lowest proteolytic activity was demonstrated for the control cheese models, whereas the highest activity throughout the ripening period was shown for the cheese models with the addition of *Lb. rhamnosus* 489.

**Keywords:** ACE inhibitory activity; adjunct culture; proteolysis; cheese models
