title: Selection of autochthonous strains as starter cultures for fermented fish products.
abstract: This paper was the 1st research focusing on the design of a halophilic lactic starter for the production of fermented fish products using a quantitative approach, based on the evaluation of the growth index and acidification score, as well as on the use of a multivariate approach to select the most promising strains. Fifty-nine strains were randomly selected from salted fish and phenotypically characterized through Gram staining, catalase activity, glucose metabolism, H2 S and indole production, nitrate reduction, citrate utilization, and hydrolysis of arginine, esculin, casein, gelatin, starch, Tween 80, and urea. Then the Gram positive isolates (44 out of 59) were studied for their growth at different temperatures (10, 25, 40, and 55 °C), salt (0%, 20%, and 30%), pHs (4.5 and 9.5), and acidification score in lab medium. Data were modelled through growth index and used as input to run a preliminary cluster analysis and a principal component analysis. Three promising strains were selected, identified as members of the genus Pediococcus and used for the validation at laboratory level through the assessment of their performances in the production of a fermented fish sauce. The results were really promising as their use not only reduced the fermentation time (2 d) but also improved the microbiological quality of the final product. This paper represents a 1st report on the use of a simple step-by-step methodology to select promising halophilic strains for the optimization of a starter for fish-fermented products.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of the Science of Agriculture, Food and Environment (SAFE), Univ. of Foggia, Via Napoli 25, 71122, Foggia, Italy.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Speranza
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Racioppo
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bevilacqua
authors.forename: Luciano
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Beneduce
authors.forename: Milena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sinigaglia
authors.forename: Maria Rosaria
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Corbo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001420:Bacteria, Aerobic / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D004755:Enterobacteriaceae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005285:Fermentation; D005396:Fish Products / Q000382:microbiology*; D005399:Fishes / Q000382:microbiology; D005511:Food Handling; D005516:Food Microbiology; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007777:Lactobacillaceae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D050296:Microbial Viability / Q000187:drug effects; D010376:Pediococcus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010641:Phenotype; D011548:Pseudomonadaceae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012329:RNA, Bacterial / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D017423:Sequence Analysis, RNA; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D012329:RNA, Bacterial; D012965:Sodium Chloride
keywords: fermented fish; growth index; quantitative approach; starter selection