• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.423-429
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• 2009

The objective of this study was to investigate the potential of the application of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from kimchi as a starter culture in the production of fermented sausages. To achieve this, a submerged model medium that contained LAB as part of a complex system of kimchi (0.5, 1.0, 1.0, 3.0, and 5.0%) and lyophilized kimchi powder (0.2 and 0.5%) was fermented for 120 h. During the fermentation period, the growth of total viable organisms and LAB, and the changes in the pH and the titratable acidity, were investigated. The initial LAB counts ranged from 6.4 to 7.7 Log CFU/mL for the kimchi media, and from 6.9 to 6.9 Log CFU/mL for the kimchi powder media. In all the kimchi batches, the LAB increased logarithmically, and the highest LAB counts (around 9 Log CFU/mL) were reached in 24 h. An evident lag phase of the LAB was observed in the kimchi powder samples and reached 8.8 Log CFU/mL in 8 h. The decrease in the pH and the formation of lactic acid were rapid in the kimchi batches, and reached pH values of 3.4-3.5 in 12 h. With these results, the LAB that was integrated with the addition of kimchi or kimchi powder demonstrated its potential utility as a substitute for starter culture.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.142-158
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• 2019

Kimchi is a traditional Korean fermented vegetable probiotic food. The use of high quality ingredients and predominant LAB (lactic acid bacteria)-whether it be ambient bacteria or adding starters, low temperature and facultative anaerobic condition for the fermentation are important factors for preparing kimchi with better taste and functionality. The predominated LAB genera are Leuconostoc, Lactobacillus, and Weissella in kimchi fermentation. The representative species are Leu. mesenteroides, Leu. citrium, Lab. plantarum, Lab. sakei, and Wei. koreensis. Kimchi, especially the optimally fermented kimchi, has various health benefits, including control of colon health, antioxidation, antiaging effects, cancer preventive effect, antiobesity, control of dyslipidemic and metabolic syndrome, etc.; due to the presence of LAB, various nutraceuticals, and metabolites from the ingredients and LAB. The kimchi LAB are good probiotics, exhibiting antimicrobial activity, antioxidant, antimutagenic and anticancer effects, as well as immunomodualatory effect, antiobesity, and cholesterol and lipid lowering effects. Thus, kimchi ingredients, LAB, fermentation methods, and metabolites are important factors that modulate various functionalities. In this review, we introduced recent information showing kimchi and its health benefits in Korean Functional Foods (Park & Ju 2018).

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.622-633
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• 2024

For quality standardization, the application of functional lactic acid bacteria (LAB) as starter cultures for food fermentation is a well-known method in the fermented food industry. This study assessed the effect of adding a non-thermally microbial inactivated starter culture to kimchi, a traditional Korean food, in standardizing its quality. In this study, pretreatment based on sterilization processes, namely, slightly acidic electrolyzed water (SAEW) disinfection and ultraviolet C light-emitting diode (UVC-LED) of raw and subsidiary kimchi materials were used to reduce the initial microorganisms in them, thereby increasing the efficiency and value of the kimchi LAB starter during fermentation. Pretreatment sterilization effectively suppressed microorganisms that threatened the sanitary value and quality of kimchi. In addition, pretreatment based on sterilization effectively reduced the number of initial microbial colonies in kimchi, creating an environment in which kimchi LAB starters could settle or dominate, compared to non-sterilized kimchi. These differences in the initial microbial composition following the sterilization process and the addition of kimchi LAB starters led to differences in the metabolites that positively affect the taste and flavor of kimchi. The combined processing technology used in our study, that is, pre-sterilization and LAB addition, may be a powerful approach for kimchi quality standardization.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.236-242
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• 2010

The objective of this study was to investigate the potential of the application of kimchi LAB as starter culture in the production of fermented sausages. For this, the solid-state model media composed to simulate the substantial conditions of meat mixtures were fermented for 120 h after the treatment with different concentrations of kimchi (0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 3.0, and 5.0%) and lyophilized kimchi-powder (0.2 % and 0.5%). During the fermentation period, the growth of total viable cells and LAB, and the changes of pH and titratable acidity were investigated. The initial LAB counts ranged from 7.18 to 8.34 Log CFU/ mL for kimchi media and from 6.93 to 6.94 Log CFU/mL for kimchi-powder media depending on the added concentrations. The kimchi LAB in this study were not influenced by the immobilized condition for their adaptation and growth by showing no lag phase and thus acted similar as in the submerged medium. The initially increased counts reached around 9 Log CFU/ mL in 12 h independent of the concentrations of a ded kimchi. However, the growth and metabolic activity of kimchi-powder LAB were influenced by the immobilized condition. Supposedly, as the nutrient supply in solid-state depended solely on diffusion, these differences in the souring properties were caused by the LAB topography in the medium matrix. Nevertheless, the differences in the numbers of LAB between two media were less than 0.5 Log units and the pH drop in the solidstate batches was quite rapid and reached low values. Therefore, it can be assumed that kimchi and kimchi-powder LAB showed the utility as the substitute of commercial starter culture even without a rehydrating pretreatment.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.7
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• pp.1060-1066
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• 2020

This study was focused on developing and obtaining a kimchi starter for use in commercial kimchi production. Kimchi varieties made with selected starters are of high quality, have high levels of mannitol, and extended shelf life. The starters were screened for properties such as mannitol production, low gas/acid production, and acid resistance. Finally, kimchi fermentation testing was performed using selected LAB starters. Kimchi samples were prepared with lactic acid bacteria (LAB) starters, including Leuconostoc mesenteroides PBio03 and Leuconostoc mesenteroides PBio104. The LAB starters are isolated from kimchi and can grow under pH 3.0 and low temperature conditions of 5℃. Four kimchi samples were fermented and stored for 28 days at 5℃. The kimchi samples made with starters (PBio03 and PBio104) had better quality (production of mannitol and maintenance of heterofermentative LAB dominance) than the non-starter kimchi samples. In the starter kimchi, Leu. mesenteroides was the dominant LAB, comprising 80% and 70% of total LAB counts at 7 and 21 days, respectively. Mannitol content of the kimchi with Leu. mesenteroides PBio03 was 1,423 ± 19.1 mg/100 g at 28 days, which was higher than that of the non-starter kimchi sample (1,027 ± 12.2 mg/100 g). These results show the possibility of producing kimchi with improved qualities using Leu. mesenteroides PBio03 and PBio104 as starters.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.12
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• pp.1583-1588
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• 2022

In this study, we investigated the effect of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains used as starters for kimchi fermentation, namely Lactococcus lactis WiKim0124, Companilactobacillus allii WiKim39, Leuconostoc mesenteroides WiKim0121Leuconostoc mesenteroides WiKim33, and Leuconostoc mesenteroides WiKim32, on the intestinal epithelial tight junctions (TJs). These LAB strains were not cytotoxic to Caco-2 cells at 500 ㎍/ml concentration. In addition, hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) decreased Caco-2 viability, but the LAB strains protected the cells against H₂O₂-induced cytotoxicity. We also found that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) promoted Caco-2 proliferation; however, no specific changes were observed upon treatment with LAB strains and LPS. Our evaluation of the permeability in the Caco-2 monolayer model confirmed its increase by both LPS and H₂O₂. The LAB strains inhibited the increase in permeability by protecting TJs, which we evaluated by measuring TJ proteins such as zonula occludens-1 and occludin, and analyzing them by western blotting and immunofluorescence staining. Our findings show that LAB strains used for kimchi fermentation can suppress the increase in intestinal permeability due to LPS and H₂O₂ by protecting TJs. Therefore, these results suggest the possibility of enhancing the functionality of kimchi through its fermentation using functional LAB strains.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.8
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• pp.1066-1075
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• 2023

Kimchi is a traditional Korean fermented vegetable that is stored and fermented at low temperatures. However, kimchi lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are typically isolated under mesophilic conditions, which may be inappropriate for isolating the diverse LAB. Therefore, this study investigated the suitable conditions for isolating various LAB from kimchi. Here, LAB were isolated from four kimchi samples using MRS, PES, and LBS media and varying isolation temperatures (30, 20, 10, and 5℃). Then, MRS was selected as the suitable medium for LAB isolation. A comparison of culture-dependent and culture-independent approaches indicated that 5℃ was not a suitable isolation temperature. Thus, the number and diversity of LAB were determined at 30, 20, and 10℃ using 12 additional kimchi samples to elucidate the effect of isolation temperature. With the exception of two samples, most samples did not substantially differ in LAB number. However, Leuconostoc gelidum, Leuconostoc gasicomitatum, Leuconostoc inhae, Dellaglioa algida, Companilactobacillus kimchiensis, Leuconostoc miyukkimchii, Leuconostoc holzapfelii, and Leuconostoc carnosum were isolated only at 10 and 20℃. The growth curves of these isolates, except Leu. holzapfelii and Leu. carnosum, showed poor growth at 30℃. This confirmed their psychrotrophic characteristics. In Weissella koreensis, which was isolated at all isolation temperatures, there was a difference in the fatty acid composition of membranes between strains that could grow well at 30℃ and those that could not. These findings can contribute to the isolation of more diverse psychrotrophic strains that were not well isolated under mesophilic temperatures.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.89-95
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• 2013

Biological and functional characteristics of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were investigated in mustard stem/leaf kimchi (MK), cabbage kimchi (CK), young radish kimchi (YRK), and cubed radish kimchi (CRK). LAB of young radish kimchi were mainly composed of bacilli in contrast to the other kimchi. 89.2% LAB isolated from all kimchi harbored plasmids. However, LAB had an average of $4.1{\pm}0.5$ plasmid bands in YRK, more than MK, CK, and CRK. Exopolysaccharides were produced by 10.9~11.1% of LAB, and were especially by LAB isolated from radish kimchi. A significant percentage of LAB (69.5%) had antibacterial activity against one sensitive strain or more. LAB from CK, YRK and CRK had antimicrobial activities against Bacillus sp., Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella Typhimurium, while the LAB from MK had activities against Vibrio parahaemolyticus higher than those from the other kimchi. In YRK and CRK, acid-tolerant LAB were twice as prevalent as those in MK and CK. Bile-tolerant LAB isolated from CRK were more prevalent than other kimchi. When $10^8$ CFU of LAB were added to Caco-2 cells, 12.1% of LAB isolated from all kimchi showed similar adherent activity to Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG. LAB of MK particularly adhered to Caco-2 cells, 2.0~4.1 fold higher than LAB in the other kimchi. From these results, biological and functional characteristics of LAB varied according to the type of kimchi and LAB existing in kimchi were limited to their respective species.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.838-845
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• 2024

Excessive alcohol consumption can have serious negative consequences on health, including addiction, liver damage, and other long-term effects. The causes of hangovers include dehydration, alcohol and alcohol metabolite toxicity, and nutrient deficiency due to absorption disorders. Additionally, alcohol consumption can slow reaction times, making it more difficult to rapidly respond to situations that require quick thinking. Exposure to a large amount of ethanol can also negatively affect a person's righting reflex and balance. In this study, we evaluated the potential of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) to alleviate alcohol-induced effects and behavioral responses. Two LAB strains isolated from kimchi, Levilactobacillus brevis WiKim0168 and Leuconostoc mesenteroides WiKim0172, were selected for their ethanol tolerance and potential to alleviate hangover symptoms. Enzyme activity assays for alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) were then conducted to evaluate the role of these bacteria in alcohol metabolism. Through in vitro and in vivo studies, these strains were assessed for their ability to reduce blood alcohol concentrations and protect against alcohol-induced liver damage. The results indicated that these LAB strains possess significant ethanol tolerance and elevate ADH and ALDH activities. LAB administration remarkably reduced blood alcohol levels in rats after excessive alcohol consumption. Moreover, the LAB strains showed hepatoprotective effects and enhanced behavioral outcomes, highlighting their potential as probiotics for counteracting the adverse effects of alcohol consumption. These findings support the development of functional foods incorporating LAB strains that can mediate behavioral improvements following alcohol intake.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.76-84
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• 2013

A polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) technique followed by sequencing of the 16S rDNA fragments eluted from the bands of interest on denaturing gradient gels was used to monitor changes in the bacterial microflora of two commercial kimchi, salted cabbage, and ingredient mix samples during 30 days of fermentation at $4^{\circ}C$ and $10^{\circ}C$. Leuconostoc (Lc.) was the dominant lactic acid bacteria (LAB) over Lactobacillus (Lb.) species at $4^{\circ}C$. Weissella confusa was detected in the ingredient mix and also in kimchi samples throughout fermentation in both samples at $4^{\circ}C$ and $10^{\circ}C$. Lc. gelidum was detected as the dominant LAB at $4^{\circ}C$ in both samples. The temperature affected the LAB profile of kimchi by varing the pH, which was primarily caused by the temperature-dependent competition among different LAB species in kimchi. At $4^{\circ}C$, the sample variations in pH and titratable acidity were more conspicuous owing to the delayed growth of LAB. Temperature affected only initial decreases in pH and initial increases in viable cell counts, but affected both the initial increases and final values of titratable acidity. The initial microflora in the kimchi sample was probably determined by the microflora of the ingredient mix, not by that of the salted cabbage. The microbial distributions in the samples used in this study resembled across the different kimchi samples and the different fermentation temperatures as the numbers of LAB increased and titratable acidity decreased.