The cutting type of vegetables influences the spontaneous fermentation rate

Fermented vegetables are mainly produced by the spontaneous fermentation of raw vegetables that are roughly or thinly cut, salted and incubated in an oxygen-free environment. Despite the variety of cutting types and their potential role in the rate of solute diffusion from vegetable tissue, and henc...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Valence, Florence, Junker, Romane, Baty, Céline, Rué, Olivier, Mariadassou, Mahendra, Madec, Marie Noëlle, Maillard, Marie-Bernadette, Bage, Anne-Sophie, Chuat, Victoria, Marché, Laurent, Thierry, Anne
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Peer Community In 2025-05-01
Series:Peer Community Journal
Subjects:
Online Access:https://peercommunityjournal.org/articles/10.24072/pcjournal.553/
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849247444696563712
author Valence, Florence
Junker, Romane
Baty, Céline
Rué, Olivier
Mariadassou, Mahendra
Madec, Marie Noëlle
Maillard, Marie-Bernadette
Bage, Anne-Sophie
Chuat, Victoria
Marché, Laurent
Thierry, Anne
author_facet Valence, Florence
Junker, Romane
Baty, Céline
Rué, Olivier
Mariadassou, Mahendra
Madec, Marie Noëlle
Maillard, Marie-Bernadette
Bage, Anne-Sophie
Chuat, Victoria
Marché, Laurent
Thierry, Anne
author_sort Valence, Florence
collection DOAJ
description Fermented vegetables are mainly produced by the spontaneous fermentation of raw vegetables that are roughly or thinly cut, salted and incubated in an oxygen-free environment. Despite the variety of cutting types and their potential role in the rate of solute diffusion from vegetable tissue, and hence the fermentation rate, the effect of this factor has been little studied. Our aim was to investigate how cutting and small variations in salt concentrations impact the microbial and biochemical changes that occur during the spontaneous fermentation of vegetables. A 2 × 3 experimental design was set up with vegetable type (carrot/cabbage), cutting type (thin/rough), and salt concentration (0.8%/1%) as the different factors. The vegetables were pressed down in 500 mL-jars and then filled with brine, and two independent jars used at four stages to characterise microbial dynamics and biochemical changes by combining culturomics, 16S rRNA V5-V7 and gyrB metataxonomics, and targeted metabolomics. Culturomic and metataxonomic results revealed similar successions of the main bacterial groups in both vegetables, with Enterobacteriaceae (8 vs 7 log colony-forming units(CFU)/g) quickly replacing the initial microbiota, further replaced within a few days by lactic acid bacteria (9 vs 8 logCFU/g), mainly represented by Leuconostoc sp.  The pH fell to 3.8 within 40 h in carrot and about two weeks in cabbage. Mannitol, lactic acid and acetic acid were the main metabolites produced in both vegetables. Viable Enterobacteriaceae were no longer detected after two weeks of fermentation, except in some roughly-cut cabbage samples. No pathogenic bacteria were found. Taxonomic profiles varied depending on the marker used, e.g. Leuconostoc was only detected with gyrB and vice-versa for Clostridium. The gyrB marker enabled markedly better resolution at the species level (for 97% of ASV vs only 20% for the 16S marker). Significant effects of the cutting type, and, to a limited extent, of the NaCl concentration, were observed. Thinly-cut vegetables generally displayed more rapid fermentation compared to roughly-cut vegetables, together with higher titratable acidity, e.g. 0.8% vs 0.3%, respectively, in grated and sliced carrot after 64 h incubation. In line with this, acids were produced more rapidly and levels of viable enterobacteria fell more quickly in thinly-cut vegetables, and particularly cabbage, where the surface area generated by cutting was ~20-fold greater in shredded cabbage than in leaf cabbage. Some leaf cabbage samples displayed atypical fermentations, with particular taxa and atypical metabolite profiles producing high levels of ethanol. These general trends were modulated by quantitative and qualitative differences between replicate jars. This study therefore confirms the highly diverse microbiota of spontaneously fermented vegetables and the tight competition between Enterobacteriaceae and lactic acid bacteria regarding their colonisation. For the first time it documents the effects of cutting type on the fermentation rate.
format Article
id doaj-art-54d1b06ae3fe47479c35dc76d734040d
institution Kabale University
issn 2804-3871
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Peer Community In
record_format Article
series Peer Community Journal
spelling doaj-art-54d1b06ae3fe47479c35dc76d734040d2025-08-20T03:58:13ZengPeer Community InPeer Community Journal2804-38712025-05-01510.24072/pcjournal.55310.24072/pcjournal.553The cutting type of vegetables influences the spontaneous fermentation rate Valence, Florence0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4834-086XJunker, Romane1https://orcid.org/0009-0009-5753-2829Baty, Céline2https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1646-0653Rué, Olivier3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7517-4724Mariadassou, Mahendra4https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2986-354XMadec, Marie Noëlle5Maillard, Marie-Bernadette6Bage, Anne-Sophie7https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8129-5503Chuat, Victoria8https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1528-2680Marché, Laurent9https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4666-5027Thierry, Anne10https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9170-2889Science et Technologie du Lait et de l'Oeuf, 65, rue de Saint Brieuc 35042 Rennes, FranceUniversité Paris-Saclay, INRAE, MaIAGE, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, FranceVegenov, 29250 Saint-Pol-de-Léon, FranceUniversité Paris-Saclay, INRAE, BioinfOmics, MIGALE bioinformatics facility, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, France; Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, MaIAGE, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, FranceUniversité Paris-Saclay, INRAE, MaIAGE, 78350, Jouy-en-Josas, FranceScience et Technologie du Lait et de l'Oeuf, 65, rue de Saint Brieuc 35042 Rennes, FranceScience et Technologie du Lait et de l'Oeuf, 65, rue de Saint Brieuc 35042 Rennes, FranceScience et Technologie du Lait et de l'Oeuf, 65, rue de Saint Brieuc 35042 Rennes, FranceScience et Technologie du Lait et de l'Oeuf, 65, rue de Saint Brieuc 35042 Rennes, FranceSECurité des ALIments et Microbiologie, 101 route du Gachet, Nantes, FranceScience et Technologie du Lait et de l'Oeuf, 65, rue de Saint Brieuc 35042 Rennes, FranceFermented vegetables are mainly produced by the spontaneous fermentation of raw vegetables that are roughly or thinly cut, salted and incubated in an oxygen-free environment. Despite the variety of cutting types and their potential role in the rate of solute diffusion from vegetable tissue, and hence the fermentation rate, the effect of this factor has been little studied. Our aim was to investigate how cutting and small variations in salt concentrations impact the microbial and biochemical changes that occur during the spontaneous fermentation of vegetables. A 2 × 3 experimental design was set up with vegetable type (carrot/cabbage), cutting type (thin/rough), and salt concentration (0.8%/1%) as the different factors. The vegetables were pressed down in 500 mL-jars and then filled with brine, and two independent jars used at four stages to characterise microbial dynamics and biochemical changes by combining culturomics, 16S rRNA V5-V7 and gyrB metataxonomics, and targeted metabolomics. Culturomic and metataxonomic results revealed similar successions of the main bacterial groups in both vegetables, with Enterobacteriaceae (8 vs 7 log colony-forming units(CFU)/g) quickly replacing the initial microbiota, further replaced within a few days by lactic acid bacteria (9 vs 8 logCFU/g), mainly represented by Leuconostoc sp.  The pH fell to 3.8 within 40 h in carrot and about two weeks in cabbage. Mannitol, lactic acid and acetic acid were the main metabolites produced in both vegetables. Viable Enterobacteriaceae were no longer detected after two weeks of fermentation, except in some roughly-cut cabbage samples. No pathogenic bacteria were found. Taxonomic profiles varied depending on the marker used, e.g. Leuconostoc was only detected with gyrB and vice-versa for Clostridium. The gyrB marker enabled markedly better resolution at the species level (for 97% of ASV vs only 20% for the 16S marker). Significant effects of the cutting type, and, to a limited extent, of the NaCl concentration, were observed. Thinly-cut vegetables generally displayed more rapid fermentation compared to roughly-cut vegetables, together with higher titratable acidity, e.g. 0.8% vs 0.3%, respectively, in grated and sliced carrot after 64 h incubation. In line with this, acids were produced more rapidly and levels of viable enterobacteria fell more quickly in thinly-cut vegetables, and particularly cabbage, where the surface area generated by cutting was ~20-fold greater in shredded cabbage than in leaf cabbage. Some leaf cabbage samples displayed atypical fermentations, with particular taxa and atypical metabolite profiles producing high levels of ethanol. These general trends were modulated by quantitative and qualitative differences between replicate jars. This study therefore confirms the highly diverse microbiota of spontaneously fermented vegetables and the tight competition between Enterobacteriaceae and lactic acid bacteria regarding their colonisation. For the first time it documents the effects of cutting type on the fermentation rate.https://peercommunityjournal.org/articles/10.24072/pcjournal.553/fermented carrot, sauerkraut, cutting, lactic acid bacteria, Leuconostoc, enterobacteria, natural fermentation
spellingShingle Valence, Florence
Junker, Romane
Baty, Céline
Rué, Olivier
Mariadassou, Mahendra
Madec, Marie Noëlle
Maillard, Marie-Bernadette
Bage, Anne-Sophie
Chuat, Victoria
Marché, Laurent
Thierry, Anne
The cutting type of vegetables influences the spontaneous fermentation rate
Peer Community Journal
fermented carrot, sauerkraut, cutting, lactic acid bacteria, Leuconostoc, enterobacteria, natural fermentation
title The cutting type of vegetables influences the spontaneous fermentation rate
title_full The cutting type of vegetables influences the spontaneous fermentation rate
title_fullStr The cutting type of vegetables influences the spontaneous fermentation rate
title_full_unstemmed The cutting type of vegetables influences the spontaneous fermentation rate
title_short The cutting type of vegetables influences the spontaneous fermentation rate
title_sort cutting type of vegetables influences the spontaneous fermentation rate
topic fermented carrot, sauerkraut, cutting, lactic acid bacteria, Leuconostoc, enterobacteria, natural fermentation
url https://peercommunityjournal.org/articles/10.24072/pcjournal.553/
work_keys_str_mv AT valenceflorence thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT junkerromane thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT batyceline thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT rueolivier thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT mariadassoumahendra thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT madecmarienoelle thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT maillardmariebernadette thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT bageannesophie thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT chuatvictoria thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT marchelaurent thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT thierryanne thecuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT valenceflorence cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT junkerromane cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT batyceline cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT rueolivier cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT mariadassoumahendra cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT madecmarienoelle cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT maillardmariebernadette cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT bageannesophie cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT chuatvictoria cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT marchelaurent cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate
AT thierryanne cuttingtypeofvegetablesinfluencesthespontaneousfermentationrate