Abstract
For a long time, ripened cheeses have been officially recognized as having human health beneficial properties. However, to date only a few studies have investigated the complex microbiota of S?o Jorge and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheeses in order to identify microorganisms with probiotic potential. Hence, with the purpose of analyzing the probiotic potential of autochthone bacteria from S?o Jorge and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheeses, lactic acid bacteria isolated from both products were isolated and their direct biotic interaction against three bacteria found in the human intestine evaluated. From a total of 225 bacterial autochthone isolates, 67 had synergetic behavior with Bifidobacterium animalis , 34 had no synergetic behavior with Shigella dysenteriae and 33 had antagonistic activity with this human pathogen. Biochemical tests were used to identify these cheese isolates with probiotic potential. Lactobacillus paracasei subsp paracasei Lactobacillus arhamnosus were found in São Jorge cheese and Lactobacillus rhamnosus , Lactobacillus buchneri and Lactobacillus curvatus in the Parmigiano cheese. Overall, initial exploratory studies with São Jorge cheese seem to show a higher number of potential probiotic agents than those found in the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. However, in order to better understand the functional potential of this traditional Portuguese cheese, further confirmatory studies should be pursued.
Highlights
Foodborne diseases result from the ingestion of contaminated water or food, the main manifestation being gastrointestinal disorders
From the ten cheese samples tested in this work, it was possible to obtain a total of 225 bacterial isolates (Table 1)
41 (61%) isolates were obtained from São Jorge cheese samples and 26 (39%) from Parmigiano-Reggiano
Summary
Foodborne diseases result from the ingestion of contaminated water or food, the main manifestation being gastrointestinal disorders. Diarrhea alone is estimated to kill 2.2 million people globally every year, many of which children from developing countries [1]. Foodborne diseases constitute a heavy burden for economies all over the world due to associated mortality, morbidity and disability. Despite improvements in sanitary and living conditions, their incidence and outbreaks continue increasing globally. Consumers are aware of the fact that diet can play a positive role in disease risk management and increase life quality. Pre-, pro- and symbiotic products aimed at improving health by modifying microbiota composition have already become widely available and acceptance of these products appears to be on the rise [2]
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