The study of nutritional value and microbiological characteristics of brine cheese with vegetable additive

This article investigated brine cheeses' nutritional value and safety by adding vegetable additives (dry powder of white cabbage and coriander). Brynza brine cheese was used as the basis for the recipe. By the chemical composition of the cheese with vegetable, additives has a significantly higher protein content (26.27 g/100g), while the fat content is lower (14.98 g/100g). There is a high content of amino acids and fatty acids (PUFA 6%, MUFA 24%). During prolonged storage of brine cheese, water activity aw decreases in control from 0.997 to 0.990, mass fraction of moisture increases from 60% to 62.5%, in the brine cheese with vegetable additives aw from 0.998 to 0.991, mass fraction of moisture from 61.1% to 63.7%.The use of vegetable additives in the formulation of cheeses does not affect the deterioration of microbiological parameters compared to the control sample. As a result of experimental studies, the shelf life of brine cheese with vegetable additives is 8-10 days.

Determination of the microbial community of traditional Mongolian cheese by using culture-dependent and independent methods

Mongolian cheese is not only a requisite source of food for the nomadic Mongolian but also follows a unique Mongolian dairy artisanal method of production, possessing high nutritional value and long shelf-life. In this study, the ancient technique for the production of Mongolian cheese was investigated. The nutritional value of Mongolian cheese was characterized by its high-protein content (30.13 ± 2.99%) and low-fat content (9.66 ± 3.36%). Lactobacillus, Lactococcus, and Dipodascus were the predominant bacterial and fungal genera, and Lactobacillus helveticus, Lactococcus piscium, and Dipodascus geotrichum were the predominant species in the Mongolian cheese. The microbiota of products from different cheese factories varies significantly. The high-temperature (85°C-90°C) kneading of coagulated curds could eliminate most of the thermosensitive microorganisms for extending the shelf-life of cheese. The indigenous spore-forming microbes, which included yeasts, belonging to Pichia and Candida genera, and molds, belonging to Mucor and Penicillium genera, which originated from the surroundings during the process of cooling, drying, demolding, and vacuum packaging could survive and cause the package to swell and the cheese to grow mold. The investigation of production technology, nutrition, microbiota, and viable microbes related to shelf-life contributes to the protection of traditional technologies, extraction of highlights (nutritional profiles and curd scalding) for merchandise marketing, and standardization of Mongolian cheese production, including culture starters and aseptic technique.

Quark Cheese Processed by Dense-Phase Carbon Dioxide: Shelf-Life Evaluation and Physiochemical, Rheological, Microstructural and Volatile Properties Assessment

Dense-phase carbon dioxide (DPCD), a novel non-thermal processing technology, has attracted extensive attention due to its excellent performance in food sterilization and enzyme inactivation without quality deterioration. In this work, we aimed to extend the shelf life of quark cheese with DPCD and explore the effect of DPCD treatment as well as storage time on the quality of quark cheese. The sterilization parameters were optimized by means of orthogonal experiments, and the physiochemical, rheological, microstructural and volatile properties of cheese were investigated. The optimal DPCD treatment (20 MPa, 45 min, 55 °C) successfully extended the shelf life of quark cheese due to its inhibition effect on yeast and was able to slow down the proteolysis and alterations in pH and color of cheese. Cheese processed using DPCD after 14-day storage even displayed similar rheological properties to the control at day 0, from which bound water significantly migrated during storage. Moreover, DPCD contributed to the retention of the volatile profile of cheese during storage. This study demonstrated that DPCD is a promising pasteurization technology for quark cheese to improve its quality stability during storage.

Pequi (Caryocar brasiliense) Waste Extract as a Synergistic Agent in the Microbial and Physicochemical Preservation of Low-Sodium Raw Goat Cheese

The growth of spoilage and pathogenic bacteria during storage represents significant losses in marketing raw milk cheeses. Thus, reducing NaCl in these products is challenging, as sodium has a critical antimicrobial role. Despite advances in non-thermal technologies, the short shelf life still limits the availability of raw goat cheese. Thus, combined preservation methods can be promising because their synergies can extend shelf life more effectively. In this context, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was applied to variables to investigate the effect of pequi waste extract (PWE), a native Brazilian fruit, combined with UV-C radiation (CEU) and vacuum packaging (CEV) on the preservation of low-sodium raw goat cheese. CEV samples had lower loadings for Staphylococcus subsp. and Enterobacteriaceae than other treatments in PC2, having a count's reduction up to 3-fold (P < 0.05) compared to vacuum alone. In contrast, CEU showed an increase of up to 1.2-fold on staphylococcal count compared to UV-C alone. Still, the addition of PWE to UV-C-treated cheeses resulted in 8.5% protein loss. Furthermore, PWE, especially in CEV, delayed post-acidification during storage. It made CEV up to 4.5 and 1.6-fold more stable for color and texture, respectively than vacuum alone. These data strongly suggest that PWE may be a novel and promising synergistic agent in the microbial and physicochemical preservation of low-sodium raw milk cheese when combined with the vacuum.

Microbial Quality of and Biochemical Changes in Fresh Soft, Acid-Curd Xinotyri Cheese Made from Raw or Pasteurized Goat's Milk

The microbiological quality of and changes in the main physicochemical parameters, together with the evolution of proteolysis, lipolysis and volatile profiles of soft Xinotyri, a traditional Greek acid-curd cheese (pH≈4.4, moisture 65%, salt 1%) made from raw (RMC) or pasteurized (PMC) goat's milk without starters, were evaluated during aerobic storage at 4 ^oC for 60 days. No statistically significant differences between the total nitrogen (TN) and nitrogen fraction (% of TN) contents, the degradation of intact α_s- or β-caseins, total free amino acid (FAA) contents, and the ratio of hydrophilic and hydrophobic peptides in the water-soluble fraction of RMC and PMC were found. Threonine, alanine and lysine were the principal FAAs. Oleic, palmitic, capric and caprylic acids, and ethyl hexonate, ethyl octanoate, ethyl decanoate, ethanol, 3-methyl butanol, phenyl ethyl alcohol and acetone were the most abundant free fatty acids and volatile compounds, respectively. Cheese lipolysis evolved slowly at 4 ^oC, and milk pasteurization had no significant effect on it. Mesophilic lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were predominant in fresh cheese samples. PMC samples had significantly lower levels of enterococci and enterobacteria than RMC samples, while yeasts grew at similar levels during storage at 4 ^oC. All cheese samples (25 g) were free of Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes. Coagulase-
-positive staphylococci exceeded the 5-log safety threshold in fresh RMC samples, whereas they were suppressed (<100 CFU/g) in all PMC samples. Consequently, pasteurization of raw goat milk's and utilization of commercially defined or natural mesophilic LAB starters are recommended for standardizing the biochemical, microbial and safety qualities of fresh soft Xinotyri cheese.

Production of a Functional Fresh Cheese Enriched with the Probiotic Strain Lb. Plantarum T571 Isolated From Traditional Greek Product

The aim of the study was the production of fresh cheese with enhanced quality, standardized characteristics and increased functional and nutritional value. The main idea was to produce probiotic cheese with the use of probiotic bacteria isolated from the microflora of traditional Greek products. For this reason, fresh cheese was produced according to the traditional method (control) and the probiotic strain Lb. plantarum T571 was also added as co-culture (probiotic). All samples were inoculated with L. monocytogenes (3 strains) of 3 log CFU/g initial inoculum level. Microbiological analysis occured during cheese production and until the end of the shelf life of the product stored at 4°C under vacuum packaging. pH, water activity (aW) and titratable acidity were also monitored along with the sensory analysis of the product. The survival of probiotic and Listeria strains was assessed by Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE). Results showed that on the 1st day of manufacture the population levels of lab exceeded 8 log CFU/g for all inoculated samples. By the end of shelf life, the population levels of lab in probiotic samples were approximately 7.5 log CFU/g. However, the probiotic samples resulted to significantly higher acidity, lower pH and reduced counts of coliforms and Listeria spp. The quality characteristics of probiotic products compared with the control ones were better according to the test panel. Regarding the PFGE results, Lb. plantarum T571 strain was found in all cases at populations above 7 log CFU/g. Although further research is needed, the results of the current study were encouraging for producing a probiotic fresh cheese with high added value and increased safety levels.

Capillary Electrophoresis in Food and Foodomics

Quality and safety assessment as well as the evaluation of other nutritional and functional properties of foods imply the use of robust, efficient, sensitive, and cost-effective analytical methodologies. Among analytical technologies used in the fields of food analysis and foodomics, capillary electrophoresis (CE) has generated great interest for the analyses of a large number of compounds due to its high separation efficiency, extremely small sample and reagent requirements, and rapid analysis. The introductory section of this chapter provides an overview of the recent applications of capillary electrophoresis (CE) in food analysis and foodomics. Relevant reviews and research articles on these topics are tabulated including papers published in the period 2011-2014. In addition, to illustrate the great capabilities of CE in foodomics the chapter describes the main experimental points to be taken into consideration for a metabolomic study of the antiproliferative effect of carnosic acid (a natural diterpene found in rosemary) against HT-29 human colon cancer cells.

MicroRNAs in domestic livestock

microRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small noncoding RNA that bind to complementary sequences in the untranslated regions of multiple target mRNAs resulting in posttranscriptional regulation of gene expression. The recent discovery and expression-profiling studies of miRNAs in domestic livestock have revealed both their tissue-specific and temporal expression pattern. In addition, breed-dependent expression patterns as well as single nucleotide polymorphisms in either the miRNA or in the target mRNA binding site have revealed associations with traits of economic importance and highlight the potential use of miRNAs in future genomic selection programs.