Secret revealed?: What is the effect of microbes on buffalo mozzarella?

special italian cheese, Mozzarella to Buffalo to CampaniaIt has been recognized as a product protected by legislation European Union For nearly 30 years. now, Scientists in Italy I have analyzed Microorganisms From this particular cheese in the hope that it will reveal the secrets of its flavor, which many describe as: tenderness.

The ingredients are simple: water buffalo milk, rennet, and natural whey, treated with fresh water and brine. But natural whey starter contains microbes that are essential for developing mozzarella cheese.

The specialists used high-throughput 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, which provides a detailed picture of what’s going on. Microbes are present And in what proportions, to understand How do microbes produce mozzarella cheese?. It is worth noting that it has been defined amplicon “A segment of DNA amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or another process that results in the production of different copies of that segment.”

In this sense, by analyzing the microbes that produce mozzarella, experts discovered the dominant role of the genus Lactobacillus And Streptococcus. In addition, they showed the difference between traditional and modern production processes, according to a study published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology.

“This study sheds light on Complex interactions of microorganisms throughout the manufacturing process and encourages a deeper understanding of the craftsmanship behind this Italian cheese,” says Alessia Levante of the University of Parma, lead author of the new study.

The product is made from raw or pasteurized Italian water buffalo milk, plus rennet, enzymes produced in the stomachs of ruminant mammals, and natural whey. The starter culture consists of unidentified bacterial communities from the previous round of making mozzarella cheese from the remaining whey, the liquid remaining after the milk has coagulated and strained.

It is also processed with fresh water and brine. The researchers wanted to investigate the role of bacteria in making mozzarella, and whether this differed between just two dairies in Campania: a larger one using more modern technology and a smaller one using traditional processes.

They took samples of milk, natural whey, cheese curds, brine, and mozzarella cheese, and performed the procedure. 16S rRNA gene sequences To identify the microbes present and their proportions.

“Subtle differences, such as temperature and processing time, affected the microbial composition of the cheese and may have affected the sensory properties,” says Levante. That’s probably another way to say it It changes taste, sight, smell and texture Of mozzarella.

Specifically, they found that Pasteurized milk Additive used by modern dairies Fewer microbes This process is superior to the pigmented milk used by more traditional dairy products. This is a gentle heat treatment of milk and consists of heating it to 57/68°C for 5/20 seconds.

During the preparation process, they found that a small number of Lactobacillus and Streptococcus species began to dominate. Some species within each genus were specific to each dairy product. Then, after preparation, Lactobacillus increased and Streptococcus decreased.

The brine also inoculates the outer layer of the cheese with new microbes when it comes into contact with the surface of the cheese. But not all microbes in the brine also appear in the cheese, perhaps because they are unsuitable to live there or because they develop later in the cheese’s shelf life, after these samples are taken.

Ultimately, the researchers found that despite the large number of microbial species in the milk and brine, they concluded that The microbial composition of mozzarella is greatly influenced by its natural whey starter culture.

“We are planning a larger project to further investigate the role of raw buffalo milk in identifying microorganisms,” says Levante. The scope of this study was limited to two dairy products and a specific sample size. To provide a more complete view of the microbial complexities of traditional food production, future research aims to cover a greater number of producers and processing days.