Potential of Lactobacillus reuteri from Spontaneous Sourdough as a Starter Additive for Improving Quality Parameters of Bread

Retardation of microbial spoilage of bread can be achieved by the use of spontaneous sourdough with an antimicrobial activity.This study was undertaken to identify lactic acid bacteria naturally occurring in spontaneous sourdough and use them for quality improvement and prolonging shelf life of rye, wheat and rye with wheat bread.Identifi cation of isolates from spontaneous sourdough by pyrosequencing assay showed that Lactobacillus reuteri were dominant lactic acid bacteria.The isolates showed a wide range of antimicrobial activity and displayed a synergistic activity against other lactobacilli, some lactococci and foodborne yeasts.The best application of spontaneous sourdough was noticed in the rye bread with the lowest crumb fi rmness of the fi nal product, although the sensory results of wheat and rye with wheat bread did not statistically diff er from control bread.L. reuteri showed a high preserving capacity against fungi during storage.This may be due to bacteriocins and various fatt y acids secreted into the growth medium that were identifi ed by agar well diff usion assay and gas chromatography.L. reuteri showing high antimicrobial activity have the potential to be used as a starter additive that could improve safety and/or shelf life of bread.