title: A competitive quantitative polymerase chain reaction method for characterizing the population dynamics during kimchi fermentation.
abstract: The aim of this study was to develop a competitive quantitative-PCR (CQ-PCR) method for rapid analysis of the population dynamics of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) in kimchi. For this, whole chromosome sequences of Leuconostoc mesenteroides, Lactobacillus plantarum, and Lb. brevis were compared and species-specific PCR primers targeting dextransucrase, 16S rRNA, and surface layer protein D (SlpD) genes, respectively, were constructed. The tested strains were quantified both in medium and kimchi by CQ-PCR and the results were compared with the data obtained using a conventional plate-counting method. As a result, the three species were successfully detected and quantified by the indicated primer sets. Our results show that the CQ-PCR method targeting species-specific genes is suitable for rapid estimation of LAB population to be used in the food fermentation industry.
authors.affiliation: Department of Agricultural Biotechnology and Center for Food and Bioconvergence, Seoul National University, Seoul, 151-921, South Korea.
authors.forename: Gee-Hyun
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.forename: Jin Seok
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Moon
authors.forename: So-Yeon
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Won Ki
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Min
authors.forename: Nam Soo
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Jin-Ho
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Seo
mesh_terms: D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D017931:DNA Primers; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D005285:Fermentation; D005511:Food Handling / Q000379:methods; D005516:Food Microbiology; D007778:Lactobacillus / Q000254:growth & development*; D048191:Lactiplantibacillus plantarum / Q000254:growth & development*; D007934:Leuconostoc / Q000254:growth & development*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S