Microbial communities involved in Kasar cheese ripening

Abstract

The microbiota of non-starter lactic acid bacteria (NSLAB) and their concomitant community dynamics during cheese ripening were investigated for traditional Turkish Kasar cheeses made from raw cows' milk. Five batches of 15 Kasar cheeses produced in different dairy plants located in Kars wereanalysed during their whole ripening phase up to 180 days. Lactobacilli and lactococci were determined as the prevailing microbial groups. The molecular classification and identification of 594 LAB isolates during Kasar cheese ripening were performed through (GTG)(5)-PCR fingerprinting of their genomic DNA followed by verification of the (GTG)(5)-PCR clusters obtained after numerical analysis through 16S rRNA gene sequencing of representative isolates. Lactobacillus casei (247 isolates, 41.6%), Lactobacillus plantarum (77 isolates, 13.0%), and Pediococcus acidilactici (58 isolates, 9.8%) were the prevailing NSLAB species in all Kasar cheeses of the different dairy plants investigated throughout cheese ripening. The data of the present study contribute to the inventory of unique cheese varieties to enable the prevention of losses of microbial biodiversity and the selection of starter cultures for controlled cheese manufacturing. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.