Effect of nonstarter lactic acid bacteria on metabolites and bacterial microbiota of smear-ripened cheese during storage
Cheese is a traditional fermented dairy food, with more than 1,000 varieties of distinctive flavors. These flavors were formed by nonstarter microorganisms which are introduced spontaneously from raw materials and cheese making environment. However, due to the diversity and complexity of microbiota and components that constitute ripened cheese, the overall relationship between flavor development and existing microorganisms remains unclear. In this study, bacterial microbiota analysis was conducted on soft-type smear-ripened cheese from Japan, revealing that Marinilactibacillus, which are halophilic and alkaliphilic marine lactic acid bacteria, were predominant. We isolated Marinilactibacillus psychrotolerans RV-2-3 strain from the same smear-ripened cheese used for the bacterial microbiota analysis and performed draft genome sequencing analysis of the strain. Furthermore, smear-ripened cheese was inoculated with the isolated strain, and the fluctuation in bacterial community and metabolite composition under storage conditions was observed, comparing the cheese without the strain.