Abstract
Functional ingredients have become common in food products. The fermented Kombucha drink stands out for its probiotic and antimicrobial properties that beneficially contribute to food use. The present study aimed at assessing the antimicrobial activity of Kombucha in experimentally contaminated cheeses. Therefore, Minas Frescal cheeses were prepared, inoculated with Escherichia coli and divided into three treatments: 1) lactic acid bacteria (BioRich®); 2) lactic bacteria (BioRich ®) and 10 g of Scoby (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeasts); 3) 10 g of Scoby. The gelatinous film (Scoby) was used to produce the Kombucha extract. The experimental design was a 3 x 4 factorial arrangement with three treatments and four evaluation times. Data was analyzed with ANOVA, and treatments means were compared with the Tukey test (p £ 0.05). The parameters of minimum inhibitory concentration, color, texture, pH, acidity, water activity, counting of yeasts, lactobacilli, and total coliforms were evaluated on days 0, 3, 6, and 9 of storage. Antibacterial action of Kombucha was compared against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria for minimum inhibitory concentration. Acidity, bacterial counting, yeasts, coliforms, lactobacilli, hardness, and gumminess showed significant changes with the addition of Kombucha to cheeses (p £ 0.05). However, However, the addition of Kombucha to the cheeses did not reduce the coliform content and negatively altered the texture parameters.
Highlights
There is a growing demand for functional foods and the evolution of new market segments, which include functional drinks
In order to prepare the drink, Scoby is used as an inoculum, which consists of a symbiotic colony composed of bacteria and yeasts responsible for Kombucha fermentation (Gramza-Michałowska et al, 2016)
According to Watawana, Jayawardena, Gunawardhana, Waisundara (2015), Kombucha may inhibit the growth of several pathogens: Helicobacter pylori, E. coli, Entamoeba cloacae, P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, Staphylococcus epidermis, Agrobacterium tumefaciens, Bacillus cereus, Salmonella typhi, Leuconostoc monocytogenes, Yersinia enterocolitica, Campylobacter jejuni, and Candida albicans
Summary
There is a growing demand for functional foods and the evolution of new market segments, which include functional drinks. It is a raw dough product that has a high moisture content (46 to 55%) and pH greater than 5.0, obtained by enzymatic coagulation of milk with coagulating enzymes, either complemented or not by fermenting bacteria (lactic acid bacteria) (Brasil, 1997; Magenis et al, 2014) These characteristics make the Minas Frescal cheese a conducive mean to microbiological contamination due to the poor quality of the raw material, in addition to problems during the pasteurization process, hygiene deficiency of the instruments used in the preparation of cheese and handling of the curd, as well as inefficiency during product storage (Carvalho et al, 2007). Based on the association of Kombucha functional aspect with the high nutritional value of Minas frescal cheese, and considering the demand of the consumer market for natural foods that benefit health, the present study aimed at assessing the microbiological and physical parameters of fresh cheeses with symbiotic culture from Kombucha or commercial lactic acid bacteria, besides to showing their action in E. coli control
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