Traditional fermented foods as a source of beneficial microbes: a meta-analysis
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Abstract: Fermentation is an optimal strategy to extend the shelf-life of perishable products. Furthermore, it is a sustainable process that increases the concentration of vitamins, essential amino acids and minerals, improving the nutritional value. Also, Fermented Foods (FF) can be a vehicle of beneficial microorganisms. The purpose of this meta-analysis is to provide a worldwide map of the traditional dairy- and non- dairy FFs and of their associated microbiota, also focusing on potential beneficial outcomes for human health. Studies describing the microbiota of traditional FFs through metataxonomic approaches were selected. Metagenomic reads from each study were downloaded from the NCBI SRA database and analysed through DADA2. Our results indicate that traditional FFs are a valuable source of beneficial microorganisms, mostly belonging to the Lactic Acid Bacteria group, with probiotic activities. In addition, we highlighted that most of the currently approved probiotic strains have been firstly isolated from traditional FFs, thus emphasizing the nutritional and beneficial value of these foods for human health. Furthermore, literature suggests that probiotic strains from fermented foods might interact with the human microbiota, not only by establishing themselves, but also by competing for nutrients with potentially hazardous and pathogenic species. This meta-analysis highlights the wide distribution of tradi- tional FFs worldwide and that they are a valuable source of probiotic microorganisms, which might not only establish in the human gut and exert beneficial activities, but also com- pete for nutrients with undesirable species.