Adjunct Cultures from Non-Starter Lactic Acid Bacteria

PERALTA, GUILLERMO; BERGAMINI CARINA; WOLF, I. VERÓNICA; PEROTTI M. CRISTINA; HYNES, ERICA R

Cheese Production, consumption and health benefits

Nova Science Publishers

Lugar: Nueva York; Año: 2018; p. 39 - 96

Non-starter lactic acid bacteria (NSLAB) are relevant components of cheese microbiota because they represent an adventitious group of lactic acid bacteria that can develop during ripening up to high levels. They have been identified as responsible for some cheese defects, but their presence has also been linked to positive flavour development in most varieties of ripened cheese. For that, selected NSLAB strains, mainly mesophilic lactobacilli isolated from good quality cheeses, have been proposed as adjunct cultures to improve cheese flavour. In addition, several other beneficial properties have been found in strains from NSLAB origin, such as probiotic potential, production of bacteriocins controlling pathogens and adventitious organisms, production of bioactive peptides, and decrease of the levels of biogenic amines, among other properties, which strengthen the interest for their use as adjunct cultures in cheeses. Besides knowledge about technological or probiotic properties, the industrial application of beneficial strains requires the development of formulations with high cell concentrations by means of efficient culture and preservation methodologies such as freeze-drying, freezing or spray-drying, aspects that have been less explored.