Microbiological, biochemical, and functional aspects of sugary kefir fermentation - A review.

Sugary kefir beverage is produce by fermenting raw sugar solution with kefir grains, the latter consisting of polysaccharide and microorganisms. This beverage, with great consumption in countries such as USA, Japan, France, and Brazil, represents a promising market to functional cultured drinks. This paper reviews the microbial diversity and interaction, kinetics, safety, and bioactivities of sugary kefir fermentation. The literature reviewed here demonstrates that sugary kefir possesses a similar microbial association relative to traditional milk kefir fermentation, especially among lactic acid bacteria and yeast species, such as Lactobacillus, Leuconostoc, Kluyveromyces, Pichia, and Saccharomyces. However, a selective pressure at species level is generally observed, as, for example, the stimulation of Saccharomyces species metabolism, leading to a high content of alcohol in the final product. This also seems to stimulate the growth of acetic acid bacteria that benefit of increased ethanol production to acetic acid metabolism. Existing reports have suggested important bioactivities associated with sugary kefir beverage consumption, such as antimicrobial, antiedematogenic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cicatrizing, and healing activities. Other alternative non-dairy substrates, such as fruits, vegetables, and molasses, have also been tested for adaptation of kefir grains and production of functional beverages with distinct sensory characteristics. This diversification is of crucial importance for the production of new probiotic products to provide people with special needs (lactose intolerance) and vegan consumers.

Factors affecting mushroom Pleurotus spp.

Pleurotus genus is one of most extensively studied white-rot fungi due to its exceptional ligninolytic properties. It is an edible mushroom and it also has several biological effects, as it contains important bioactive molecules. In basidiomycete fungi, lignocellulolytic enzymes are affected by many typical fermentation factors, such as medium composition, ratio of carbon to nitrogen, pH, temperature, air composition, etc. The survival and multiplication of mushrooms is related to a number of factors, which may act separately or have interactive effects among them. Out that understanding challenges in handling Pleurotus species mushroom requires a fundamental understanding of their physical, chemical, biological and enzymatic properties. This review presents a practical checklist of available intrinsic and extrinsic factors, providing useful synthetic information that may help different users. An in-depth understanding of the technical features is needed for an appropriate and efficient production of Pleurotus spp.

Utilization of residue from cassava starch processing for production of fermentable sugar by enzymatic hydrolysis

Abstract The aim of this study was to characterize and perform enzymatic hydrolysis of cassava peeling residue (peel and inner peel), mainly composed of peels and small pieces. Residue was sanitized, dried at 55 °C for 24 hours and ground. The obtained flour showed pH of 4.85; 72.53 g 100 g-1 moisture; 5.18 mL 1M NaOH 100 g-1 acidity; 60.68 g 100 g-1 starch; 1.08 g 100 g-1 reducing sugar; 1.63 g 100g-1 ash; 0.86 g 100 g-1 lipid and 3.97 g 100 g-1 protein. Enzymatic hydrolysis was carried out by means of rotational central composite design, analyzing the effects of concentrations of α-amylase enzyme (10 to 50 U g starch-1), and the amyloglucosidase enzyme (80 to 400 U g starch-1) on variable responses: percent conversion of starch into reducing sugars (RSC) and soluble solid content (SS). Highest values of RSC (110%) and SS (12 °Brix) were observed when using the maximum concentration of amyloglucosidase and throughout the concentration range of α-amylase. Enzymatic hydrolysis of cassava peel is feasible and allows the use of hydrolysate in fermentation processes for the production of various products, such as alcoholic drinks, vinegar, among others.