The ripening of white brined cheeses made with commercial and potential autochthonous probiotic strains

Abstract

The white brined cheeses are the most popular cheeses with the long tradition of production and consumption in Serbia. Modern medical research studies indicate the importance of diet in the maintenance and improvement of health. In this regard, for the last decades, there is rapid growth of food products with dietetic and functional properties, including products with probiotic bacteria, which could be beneficial for human health. Milk products, including cheeses, represent a good base for the development of new products with functional properties, especially those with probiotic bacteria. The effects of commercial and autochthonous strains of lactic acid bacteria on the composition and proteolysis of white brined cheeses were studied throughout 30 days of ripening. Cheese A was produced with commercial strains (LL 50 A and MY 721, DSM, Netherlands) Lactococcus lactis ssp. lactis, Lactococcus lactis ssp. cremoris and probiotics Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium lactis and cheese B with autochthonous strains Lactococcus lactis ssp. lactis 563, Lactococcus lactis ssp. cremoris 565 and potential probiotics Lactobacillus plantarum 564. The rate of proteolysis was analyzed by the water and 5% phosphotungstic acid soluble nitrogen fractions, as well as by SDS and UREA PAG electrophoresis. The viability of probiotic strains during cheeses ripening was also determined. A significant influence of different starter and adjuncts bacteria on the composition was not found. The proteolysis rate was significantly different (p lt 0.05) between cheeses made with different starter cultures, due to different proteolytic activity of bacteria used. The viability of adjunct probiotic bacteria in both cheeses were maintained on the high level during the overall ripening period that are necessary for acquirement of their therapeutic effects. Cheeses made with autochthonous bacteria showed a higher rate of secondary proteolysis, as well as higher flavour scores, and were more acceptable than cheese made with commercial probiotic bacteria