The Relationship between Microbial Communities in Coffee Fermentation and Aroma with Metabolite Attributes of Finished Products

Coffee is a critical agricultural commodity and is used to produce premium beverages enjoyed by people worldwide. The microbiome of coffee beans has proven to be an essential tool that improves the flavor profile of coffee by creating aromatic flavor compounds through natural fermentation. This study investigated the natural microbial consortium during the wet process fermentation of coffee onsite in Thailand in order to identify the correlation between microbial diversity and biochemical characteristics including flavor, aroma, and metabolic attributes. Our study found 64 genera of bacteria and 59 genera of yeast/fungi present during the fermentation process. Group of microbes, mainly yeast and lactic acid bacteria, that predominated in the process were significantly correlated with preferable flavor and aroma compounds, including linalyl formate, linalool, cis-isoeugenol, trans-geraniol, and (-)-isopulegol. Some of the detected metabolites were found to be active compounds which could play a role in health.

Efficiency of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum JT-PN39 and Paenibacillus motobuensis JT-A29 for Fermented Coffee Applications and Fermented Coffee Characteristics

To develop a process for low-cost and ecologically friendly coffee fermentation, civet gut bacteria were isolated and screened to be used for fermentation. Among 223 isolates from civet feces, two bacteria exhibited strong protease, amylase, lipase, pectinase, and cellulase activities. By analyzing 16S rDNA phylogeny, those bacteria were identified to be Lactiplantibacillus plantarum JT-PN39 (LP) and Paenibacillus motobuensis JT-A29 (PM), where their potency (pure or mixed bacterial culture) for fermenting 5 L of arabica parchment coffee in 48-72 h was further determined. To characterize the role of bacteria in coffee fermentation, growth and pH were also determined. For mixed starter culture conditions, the growth of PM was not detected after 36 h of fermentation due to the low acid conditions generated by LP. Coffee quality was evaluated using a cupping test, and LP-fermented coffee expressed a higher cupping score, with a main fruity and sour flavor, and a dominant caramel-honey-like aroma. Antioxidant and anti-foodborne pathogenic bacteria activity, including total phenolic compounds of PM and LP fermented coffee extracts, was significantly higher than those of ordinary coffee. In addition, LP-fermented coffee expressed the highest antibacterial and antioxidant activities among the fermented coffee. The toxicity test was examined in the murine macrophage RAW 264.7 cell, and all fermented coffee revealed 80-90% cell variability, which means that the fermentation process does not generate any toxicity. In addition, qualifications of non-volatile and volatile compounds in fermented coffee were examined by LC-MS and GC-MS to discriminate the bacterial role during the process by PCA plot. The flavors of fermented coffee, including volatile and non-volatile compounds, were totally different between the non-fermented and fermented conditions. Moreover, the PCA plot showed slightly different flavors among fermentations with different starter cultures. For both the cupping test and biological activities, this study suggests that LP has potential for health benefits in coffee fermentation.

Incorporation of catechin extracts from gambier products and pasak bumi in the production of functional instant green robusta coffee

The research was used to produce functional instant green coffee through gambier catechin extract and pasak bumi powder. This involved using a non-factorial completely randomized design with 5 treatments and 3 replications. The treatments consist of 5 formulations (F), including the instant green coffee (%), gambir catechin extract (%), and pasak bumi powder (%) where F1 was at 100:0:0, F2 was 80:15:5, F3 was 70:20:10, F4 was 60:25:15, and F5 was 50:30:20. The results showed the functional instant green coffee produced has a water content of 3.84 – 4.81%, soluble speed of 26.78 – 29.33 seconds, and total phenol of 16.79 – 169.48 mg/L, and IC50 of 44.68- 207.59 ppm. The addition of gambier catechin extract and pasak bumi powder to the formulation was observed to have significantly increased the functional properties and water content. Moreover, the soluble speed of the instant coffee fulfils the quality requirements of the Indonesian National Standard (SNI) number 2983 of 2014.

Yeast Biotechnology 3.0

This Special Issue is a continuation of the first and second “Yeast Biotechnology” Special Issue series of the journal Fermentation (MDPI) [...]

Comparison of the Antioxidant Activities and Volatile Compounds of Coffee Beans Obtained Using Digestive Bio-Processing (Elephant Dung Coffee) and Commonly Known Processing Methods

There are different types of coffee processing methods. The wet (WP) and dry processing (DP) methods are widely practiced in different parts of coffee-growing countries. There is also a digestive bioprocessing method in which the most expensive coffee is produced. The elephant dung coffee is produced using the digestive bioprocessing method. In the present experiment, the antioxidant activity and volatile compounds of coffee that have been processed using different methods were compared. The antioxidant activity, total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), and total tannin content (TTC) of green coffee beans from all treatments were higher as compared to roasted coffee beans. Regarding the green coffee beans, the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity of elephant dung coffee beans was higher as compared to that of the DP and WP coffee beans. The green coffee beans had higher DPPH activity and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) value compared to the roasted coffee beans. The green beans of elephant dung coffee had a high TPC than the beans obtained by WP and DP methods. TFC in elephant dung coffee in both green and roasted condition was improved in contrast to the beans processed using dry and wet methods. The elephant dung coffee had an increased TTC in comparison to the DP and WP coffee (green beans). About 37 volatile compounds of acids, alcohols, aldehydes, amide, esters, ethers, furans, furanones, ketones, phenols, pyrazines, pyridines, Heterocyclic N, and pyrroles functional classes have been found. Some of the most abundant volatile compounds detected in all treatments of coffee were 2-furanmethanol, acetic acid, 2-methylpyrazine, 2,6-dimethylpyrazine, pyridine, and 5-methylfurfural. Few volatile compounds have been detected only in elephant dung coffee. The principal component analysis (PCAs) was performed using the percentage of relative peak areas of the volatile compound classes and individual volatile compounds. This study will provide a better understanding of the impacts of processing methods on the antioxidants and volatile compounds of coffee.