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Dynamics of lactic acid bacteria in “Pecorino di Tramonti”—a ewe’s milk cheese—with particular emphasis on enterococci: a preliminary study

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Abstract

The autochthonous lactic microflora involved in the production of the artisanal “Pecorino di Tramonti” cheese—a ewe’s milk cheese—was evaluated at the date of production and during ripening. Two batches, spicy and mild (not spicy) cheese, of premium quality Pecorino di Tramonti were produced from raw ewe’s milk without starter cultures, according to a very traditional technique. Lactic acid bacteria were monitored by counting on selective media. Counts for mesophilic rods and cocci on MRS and LM17 ranged from 6 to 8 Log CFU/g, respectively, during the entire ripening, but different growth trends could be observed between the two kinds of cheese. Enterococcal levels increased during the 1st month and decreased thereafter throughout ripening. A total of 169 cultures was selected randomly and identified by numerical analysis of ribopatterns. Ribotypes could be grouped in five clusters corresponding to different taxons. Enterococcus faecium proved to be the dominant species, followed by Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis, L. lactis subsp. cremoris, Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus durans.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported financially by the Veterinary Doctors Order of Salerno Province. The authors thank the cheese producers for providing samples.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production, University of Naples “Federico II”, Via Delpino 1, 80137, Naples, Italy

    Amalia Mormile, Maria Barile, Raffaelina Mercogliano & Nicoletta Murru

  2. Department of Food and Environmental Hygiene, University of Helsinki, Agnes Sjöbergin katu 2, Helsinki, Finland

    Per Johansson & Katri Johanna Björkroth

  3. Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples “Federico II”, Via Università 100, 80055, Portici (NA), Italy

    Maria Aponte

Authors
  1. Amalia Mormile
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  2. Maria Barile
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  3. Raffaelina Mercogliano
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  4. Per Johansson
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  5. Katri Johanna Björkroth
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  6. Maria Aponte
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  7. Nicoletta Murru
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Correspondence to Nicoletta Murru.

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Mormile, A., Barile, M., Mercogliano, R. et al. Dynamics of lactic acid bacteria in “Pecorino di Tramonti”—a ewe’s milk cheese—with particular emphasis on enterococci: a preliminary study. Ann Microbiol 66, 179–185 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13213-015-1094-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13213-015-1094-1

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