| Title |
Antifungal Activity of Leuconostoc citreum and Weissella confusa in Rice Cakes |
| Author |
Eunjong Baek1, Hyojin Kim1, Hyejung Choi2, Sun Yoon2, and Jeongho Kim1* |
| Address |
1Department of Biological Sciences, Inha University, Incheon 402-751, Republic of Korea, 2Department of Food and Nutrition, Yonsei University, Seoul 120-749, Republic of Korea |
| Bibliography |
Journal of Microbiology, 50(5),842-848, 2012,
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| DOI |
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| Key Words |
lactic acid bacteria, antifungal activity, food safety, rice dough, rice cake |
| Abstract |
The antifungal activity of organic acids greatly improves the shelf life of bread and bakery products. However, little is known about the effect of lactic acid fermentation on fungal contamination in rice cakes. Here, we show that lactic acid fermentation in rice dough can greatly retard the growth of three fungal species when present in rice cakes, namely Cladosporium sp. YS1, Neurospora sp. YS3, and Penicillium crustosum YS2. The antifungal activity of the lactic acid bacteria against these fungi was much better than that of 0.3% calcium propionate. We found that organic acids including lactic and acetic acid, which are byproducts of lactic fermentation or can be artificially added, were the main antifungal substances. We also found that some Leuconostoc citreum and Weissella confusa strains could be good starter species for rice dough fermentation. These results imply that these lactic acid bacteria can be applicable to improve the preservation of rice cakes. |
