Biotechnology of Lactic Acid Bacteria: Novel Applications

G. ROLLÁN, C.L. GEREZ, M.I. TORINO AND G. FONT DE VALDEZ:

New Trends In Cereal-Based Products

Wiley-Blackwell

Lugar: USA; Año: 2009;

The global importance of cereal to the human diet and moreover to the written history of man and agriculture cannot be over stated. Nutritionally, they are an important source of dietary protein, carbohydrates, vitamins E and B-complex, iron, trace minerals, and fiber. Major cereal crops worldwide produced include wheat, rice, maize and barley, the main application is in bread manufacture (20-106 kg per capita annual). Only wheat and rye are suitable for the elaboration of leavened bread because of the presence of appropriate amounts (8-14%) of the complex protein gluten. Other common usages of cereals are in the preparation of fermented traditional products such as Ogi (maize, miho, sorghum), Kenkey (maize), Garri (cassava) as well as drinks. In these fermented cereal-based products, different species of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) belonging to the genus Lactobacillus, Leuconostoc, Weissella, Pediococcus, Lactococcus, Enterococcus and Streptococcus are involved. The lactic fermentation of cereals improves the food quality through the development of flavour, improvement of the nutritional value, rheology and shelf life of the products, and by removing toxic and antinutritional factors. Cereals are suitable substrates for the formulation of new functional foods containing prebiotic and probiotic LAB.