Browsing by Subject "yeasts"

Sourdoughs are a natural habitat for microbial communities predominated by lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and yeasts. How microbial communities assemble and function is, to a large extent, determined by inter-species interactions. However, evidence for LAB-yeast interactions in rich environments, such as sourdough, is yet largely unavailable. In this study, a set of LAB and yeast species was isolated from rye and wheat sourdoughs. While mainly typical sourdough species were identified, Pediococcus parvulus was, to the best of our knowledge, for the first time isolated from sourdoughs. The isolates were characterized in rich chemically defined culture conditions and screened for interactions. Potential interactions were discovered where LAB growth was enabled by a yeast, or where stable communities were formed despite competition. These findings, the resource of naturally co-occurring species, and the designed chemically defined growth medium present the grounds for future research for uncovering the underlying mechanisms of LAB-yeast interactions in rich environments. LAB and yeasts commonly co-occur rich environments of fermented food processes and also in human gut and soil microbiomes. Therefore, the outcomes of this study support not only the optimization of food fermentations but provide also model systems for complex communities directly influencing human health.