title: Microbial biogeography of the transnational fermented milk matsoni.
abstract: The fermented milk matsoni is a traditional, national food product of both Georgia and Armenia. Little is known about the effects of biogeography and milk type on the microbial biodiversity of matsoni or the fungal composition of matsoni fermentations. High-throughput marker-gene sequencing was used to survey the bacterial and fungal communities of matsoni from different milk types and regions throughout Armenia and Georgia. Results demonstrate that both production region and milk type influence matsoni microbiota, suggesting that the traditional production methods preserve the transfer of unique regional microbiota from batch to batch. Bacterial profiles were dominated by Lactobacillus and Streptococcus species. Yeast profiles varied dramatically, with Kluyveromyces marxianus, Candida famata, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Lodderomyces elongisporus, and Kluyveromyces lactis being the most important species distinguishing production regions and milk types. This survey will enable more detailed capture and characterization of specific microbiota detected within these fermentations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Viticulture and Enology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Department of Food Science and Technology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Foods for Health Institute, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA.
authors.forename: Nicholas A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Bokulich
authors.affiliation: S. Durmishidze Institute of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Agricultural University of Georgia, 0159 Tbilisi, Georgia.
authors.forename: Lia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Amiranashvili
authors.affiliation: Scientific and Production Center "Armbiotechnology" NAS, Yerevan, Armenia.
authors.forename: Karine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Chitchyan
authors.affiliation: Scientific and Production Center "Armbiotechnology" NAS, Yerevan, Armenia.
authors.forename: Narine
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ghazanchyan
authors.affiliation: Scientific and Production Center "Armbiotechnology" NAS, Yerevan, Armenia.
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Darbinyan
authors.affiliation: S. Durmishidze Institute of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Agricultural University of Georgia, 0159 Tbilisi, Georgia.
authors.forename: Nino
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Gagelidze
authors.affiliation: S. Durmishidze Institute of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Agricultural University of Georgia, 0159 Tbilisi, Georgia.
authors.forename: Tinatin
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sadunishvili
authors.affiliation: Scientific and Production Center "Armbiotechnology" NAS, Yerevan, Armenia.
authors.forename: Vigen
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Goginyan
authors.affiliation: S. Durmishidze Institute of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Agricultural University of Georgia, 0159 Tbilisi, Georgia.
authors.forename: Giorgi
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kvesitadze
authors.affiliation: Earth Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
authors.forename: Tamas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Torok
authors.affiliation: Department of Viticulture and Enology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Department of Food Science and Technology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Foods for Health Institute, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA. Electronic address: damills@ucdavis.edu.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Mills
mesh_terms: D001136:Armenia; D001419:Bacteria / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D044822:Biodiversity; D002175:Candida / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D043302:Cultured Milk Products / Q000145:classification / Q000382:microbiology*; D005285:Fermentation; D005516:Food Microbiology; D005846:Georgia (Republic); D059014:High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; D007716:Kluyveromyces / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification; D007778:Lactobacillus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D064307:Microbiota; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013291:Streptococcus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015003:Yeasts / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification*
keywords: Fermentation; Microbial ecology; Next-generation sequencing