Phenotypic diversity of lactic acid bacteria isolated from fermented sausages produced in Basilicata (Southern Italy).
OBJECTIVE
to evaluate the evolution of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) populations in traditional fermented sausages (salsiccia and soppressata) produced in artisanal and industrial plants in Basilicata (Southern Italy).


RESULTS
Four hundred and fourteen lactic acid bacteria (LAB) cultures were isolated from samples of sausages at different stages of ripening. A phenotypic characterization of the isolates was carried out using a set of 28 tests, and 34 clusters were identified at the 80% similarity level using hierarchical cluster analysis. Of the isolates 50% were identified as Lactobacillus sakei (with several biotypes), 22% as Pediococcus spp. (mainly Ped. pentosaceus), 7% as Leuconostoc (Leuc. carnosum, Leuc. gelidum, Leuc. pseudomesenteroides), 6% as Lact. plantarum, 1% as Lact. curvatus. Other lactobacilli, including unidentified species, were present in lower numbers.


CONCLUSIONS
The phenotypic diversity and composition of the LAB flora varied as a function of the production plant, product type and ripening time. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OT THE STUDY: A new procedure based on bootstrapping and Multidimensional Scaling was successfully used to obtain a graphical representation of the evolution of the LAB populations.
Parente
E
E
Dipartimento di Biologia, Difesa e Biotecnologie Agro-forestali, Università della Basilicata, Potenza, Italy. parente@unibas.it
Grieco
S
S
Crudele
M A
MA
D016000:Cluster Analysis; D005285:Fermentation; D005516:Food Microbiology; D019344:Lactic Acid; D007778:Lactobacillus / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D007934:Leuconostoc / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008461:Meat Products / Q000382:microbiology*; D010376:Pediococcus / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010641:Phenotype; D013289:Streptococcaceae / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification
D019344:Lactic Acid