Metabolomic Profiling of Probiotic <i>Lactobacillus acidophilus</i> Strain LA01 on Bovine Bone Powder Fermentation

ABSTRACT Bones, as by‐products of meat processing, are in fact rich in multiple nutrients such as proteins and fatty acids, and are recognized as an excellent source of calcium. However, because of technological limitations, the current utilization rate of bone resources is generally low. Leveraging the metabolic fermentation of bone meal by microorganisms presents a promising strategy. Here, we report a food‐grade safe strain, Lactobacillus acidophilus LA01, and present its complete genome sequence. Annotation of a series of proteases indicates that strain LA01 possesses the potential to ferment bone meal. Under fermentation conditions containing 35 g/L glucose and 200 g/L bone meal, the free calcium concentration in the fermentation broth reached as high as 2.4 g/L after 36 h, demonstrating the superior performance of LA01 in bone‐meal fermentation. Untargeted metabolomic analysis revealed that amino acids and their metabolites, particularly small peptides that are readily absorbed, were significantly upregulated in the bone‐meal fermentation broth. In addition, several compounds with lipid‐lowering and antioxidant properties, such as S ‐methyl‐L‐methionine and N ‐(2‐mercaptoacetyl)‐glycine, were also substantially enriched. These findings provide valuable insights into the metabolic activities of probiotic fermentation and lay a scientific foundation for the development of high‐value‐added bovine bone products.