Bacterial Populations in International Artisanal Kefirs.

Abrar Sindi,Gülhan Ünlü,Md Bahadur Badsha

doi:10.3390/microorganisms8091318

Abrar Sindi, Gülhan Ünlü + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8091318

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Abstract

Artisanal kefir is a traditional fermented dairy product made using kefir grains. Kefir has documented natural antimicrobial activity and health benefits. A typical kefir microbial community includes lactic acid bacteria (LAB), acetic acid bacteria, and yeast among other species in a symbiotic matrix. In the presented work, the 16S rRNA gene sequencing was used to reveal bacterial populations and elucidate the diversity and abundance of LAB species in international artisanal kefirs from Fusion Tea, Britain, the Caucuses region, Ireland, Lithuania, and South Korea. Bacterial species found in high abundance in most artisanal kefirs included Lactobacillus kefiranofaciens, Lentilactobacillus kefiri, Lactobacillus ultunensis, Lactobacillus apis, Lactobacillus gigeriorum, Gluconobacter morbifer, Acetobacter orleanensis, Acetobacter pasteurianus, Acidocella aluminiidurans, and Lactobacillus helveticus. Some of these bacterial species are LAB that have been reported for their bacteriocin production capabilities and/or health promoting properties.

Highlights

Artisanal kefir is an ancient fermented beverage obtained via fermentation of milk by kefir grains [1]
Relative abundances of bacterial phyla and bacterial genera based on the V1–V3 and the V3–V4 regions of the 16S rRNA genes were determined for the kefir product from Lithuania (LP), kefir grains from Lithuania (LG), kefir product from South Korea (KP), kefir grains from South Korea (KG), kefir product from Ireland (IP), kefir grains from Ireland (IG), kefir product from the Caucuses region (CP), kefir grains from the Caucuses region (CG), kefir product from Britain (BP), kefir grains from Britain (BG), kefir product from Fusion Tea (AP, Amazon), and kefir grains from Fusion Tea (AG, Amazon) (Figure 1)
The culture-independent method employed in our work, the 16S rRNA gene sequencing, successfully revealed the microbial populations in six international artisanal kefirs and demonstrated the diversity and abundance of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) found in each kefir tested, many with reported capability of producing bacteriocins and potential health benefits

Summary

Introduction

Artisanal kefir is an ancient fermented beverage obtained via fermentation of milk by kefir grains [1]. Kefir grains are a combination of yeast, bacteria, and bacterial polysaccharides [2]. Up to 50 different bacterial and yeast species have been identified in artisanal kefirs [1,3,4]. Numerous combinations of these microorganisms at the species level lead to artisanal kefirs with unique characteristics. Culture-independent methods are commonly used to identify microbial diversity in fermented foods and beverages. Among these methods, the 16S rRNA gene sequencing has been suggested as a suitable method for identification of bacteria at the species level [7]

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