| Title |
Analyses of Bacterial Communities in Meju, a Korean Traditional Fermented Soybean Bricks, by Cultivation-Based and Pyrosequencing Methods |
| Author |
Yi-Seul Kim1, Min-Cheol Kim2, Soon-Wo Kwon1, Soo-Jin Kim1, In-Cheol Park1, Jong-Ok Ka3, and Hang-Yeon Weon1* |
| Address |
1Agricultural Microbiology Team, National Academy of Agricultural Science, Rural Development Administration, Suwon 441-707, Republic of Korea, 2School of Biological Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-942, Republic of Korea, 3School of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-942, Republic of Korea |
| Bibliography |
Journal of Microbiology, 49(3),340-348, 2011,
|
| DOI |
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| Key Words |
bacterial communities, cultivation-based, fermented soybean bricks, meju, pyrosequencing |
| Abstract |
Despite the importance of meju as a raw material used to make Korean soy sauce (ganjang) and soybean paste (doenjang), little is known about the bacterial diversity of Korean meju. In this study, the bacterial communities in meju were examined using both culture-dependent and independent methods in order to
evaluate the diversity of the bacterial population. Analyses of the 16S rRNA gene sequences of the bacterial strains isolated from meju samples showed that the dominant species were related to members of the genera Bacillus, Enterococcus, and Pediococcus. The community DNAs extracted from nine different meju samples
were analyzed by barcoded pyrosequencing method targeting of the V1 to V3 hypervariable regions of the 16S rRNA gene. In total, 132,374 sequences, with an average read length of 468 bp, were assigned to several phyla, with Firmicutes (93.6%) representing the predominant phylum, followed by Proteobacteria
(4.5%) and Bacteroidetes (0.8%). Other phyla accounted for less than 1% of the total bacterial sequences. Most of the Firmicutes were Bacillus and lactic acid bacteria, mainly represented by members of the genera Enterococcus, Lactococcus, and Leuconostoc, whose ratio varied among different samples. In conclusion,
this study indicated that the bacterial communities in meju were very diverse and a complex microbial consortium containing various microorganisms got involved in meju fermentation than we expected before. |
