Lactic acid bacteria: promising supplements for enhancing the biological activities of kombucha

Abstract

Kombucha is sweetened black tea that is fermented by a symbiosis of bacteria and yeast embedded within a cellulose membrane. It is considered a health drink in many countries because it is a rich source of vitamins and may have other health benefits. It has previously been reported that adding lactic acid bacteria (Lactobacillus) strains to kombucha can enhance its biological functions, but in that study only lactic acid bacteria isolated from kefir grains were tested. There are many other natural sources of lactic acid bacteria. In this study, we examined the effects of lactic acid bacteria from various fermented Vietnamese food sources (pickled cabbage, kefir and kombucha) on kombucha’s three main biological functions: glucuronic acid production, antibacterial activity and antioxidant ability. Glucuronic acid production was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry, antibacterial activity was assessed by the agar-well diffusion method and antioxidant ability was evaluated by determining the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging capacity. Four strains of food-borne pathogenic bacteria were used in our antibacterial experiments: Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 19111, Escherichia coli ATCC 8739, Salmonella typhimurium ATCC 14028 and Bacillus cereus ATCC 11778. Our findings showed that lactic acid bacteria strains isolated from kefir are superior to those from other sources for improving glucuronic acid production and enhancing the antibacterial and antioxidant activities of kombucha. This study illustrates the potential of Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus plantarum isolated from kefir as biosupplements for enhancing the bioactivities of kombucha.

Biocontrol Processes in Fruits and Fresh Produce, the Use of Lactic Acid Bacteria as a Sustainable Option

“…In agriculture, the interest in the use of LAB as an alternative for the control of enteric pathogens has been increasing (Menconi et al, 2014;Nguyen et al, 2015). Therefore, the use of LAB in fresh foods has prevented the growth of pathogenic microorganisms (Russo et al, 2014;Li et al, 2015).…”

Optimization of affecting factors to glucuronic acid production in mature coconut fermentation

“…Năm 2014, Ly và cộng sự đã công bố nghiên cứu tối ưu hóa lên men sữa bởi vi khuẩn acetic và lactic thu axit glucuronic [6]. Đặc biệt, Nguyen và cộng sự (2015) cũng đã có nghiên cứu chứng minh khi bổ sung vi khuẩn lactic vào hệ lên men trà Kombucha thì lượng axit glucuronic tăng đáng kể [7].…”

“…giảm đến một giới hạn nào đó thì sẽ ảnh hưởng ngược lại [7,9]. Khoảng nhiệt độ khảo sát của thí nghiệm là từ 25 đến 45 ○ C. Trong khi đó vi khuẩn G. nataicola là chủng vi khuẩn sinh trưởng ở khoảng nhiệt độ tối ưu từ 12 đến 35 ○ C [13].…”

“…Vi khuẩn L. acidophilus có vai trò hỗ trợ vi khuẩn G. nataicola biến dưỡng sinh axit glucuronic nên tỷ lệ L. acidophilus khởi động quá trình lên men cũng là yếu tố có ảnh hưởng nhất định đến khả năng sinh axit [5][6][7]. Trong thí nghiệm, chúng tôi nhận thấy hàm lượng axit sinh ra tăng tỷ lệ thuận với tỷ lệ vi khuẩn L. Acidophilus bổ sung nhưng khi tăng đến một giới hạn sẽ ức chế ngược trở lại khả năng sinh axit glucuronic.…”

Characteristics of Kombucha Fermentation from Different Substrates and Cytotoxicity of Tea Broth

“…Factors such as fermentation substrates, fermentation time and incorporation of other probiotics such as lactic acid bacteria change the chemical and microbial components and bioactivities during tea fungus fermentation [11][12][13]. These factors also influence the antioxidant property of kombucha [10,14].…”