PROBIOTIC PATEGRÁS ARGENTINO CHEESE: VARIATION OF FREE FATTY ACIDS AND CHOLESTEROL DURING RIPENING

PEROTTI, MARÍA CRISTINA; MERCANTI, DIEGO JAVIER; BERNAL, SUSANA MARGARITA; ZALAZAR, CARLOS ANTONIO

SCIENZA E TECNICA LATTIERO CASEARIA

Nuova Futurgraf

Lugar: Parma (Italia); Año: 2005 vol. 56 p. 419 - 436

0390-6361

abstract In the present work the lipolysis and cholesterol content of probiotic Pategrás Argentino cheeses were studied. Cheeses were made at a pilot plant scale with single commercial probiotic cultures added using two different addition methodologies (experimentals). Two strains of Lactobacillus acidophilus and one strain of Lactobacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei were tested. Cheeses without probiotic bacteria were used as controls. Free fatty acids (FFA) from C6:0 to C18:2 were quantified at 3 and 60 days of ripening by gas chromatography (GC). The chromatographic profiles were analyzed using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) in order to detect differences between control and experimental cheeses. Cholesterol concentration was determined by GC. There were not significant differences between control and experimental cheeses during ripening, both in the FFA profile and the cholesterol concentration. Thus, the incorporation of probiotic bacteria did not have an effect on lipolytic profiles and cholesterol levels. Results obtained from the present study indicate that the probiotic strains assayed are not lipolytic and they are not able to metabolize cholesterol during ripening in this type of cheese. KEYWORDS: probiotic bacteria, Pategrás Argentino, lipolysis, cholesterol, ripening.