Tag: gm crops

Sourdough (leavened bread) is a bread product made by a long fermentation of dough using naturally occurring Lactobacilli and yeasts. The most commonly used yeast species in the production of sourdough are Kazanchastania exigua (Saccharomyces exiguous), Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Candida Milleri, and Candida humilis

Malted barley is barley that has been allowed to germinate (sprout) to a degree and is then dried. The germination process converts starch, the seed's stored energy, into simpler sugars used in its initial growing stage. The conversion of starch to sugar is accomplished by diastase enzymes that the seed produces during this process. The germination and drying stages capture fermentable sugars, soluble starch, and the diastase enzymes for beer brewing. 

Lactic acid fermentation is a biological process by which glucose and other six-carbon sugars are converted into cellular energy and the metabolite lactate. Lactic acid fermentation is caused by some fungi and bacteria. The most important lactic acid producing bacteria is Lactobacillus. The presence of lactic acid, produced during the lactic acid fermentation is responsible for the sour taste and for the improved microbiological stability and safety of the food. This lactic acid fermentation is responsible for the sour taste of dairy products such as cheese, yoghurt 

Rennet is a complex of enzymes produced in stomachs of ruminant mammals which is used in the production of most cheeses. Chymosin, its key component, is a protease enzyme that curdles the casein in milk, helping young mammals digest their mothers' milk. It can also be used to separate milk into solid curds used for cheesemaking and liquid whey.

There are four principal methods available for immobilizing enzymes as follows:

Fermentation is an anaerobic process in which energy can be released from glucose even though oxygen is not available. Fermentation occurs in yeast cells. Yeasts are able to participate in fermentation because they have the necessary enzyme to convert pyruvic acid to ethyl alcohol. 

Large-scale, commercial production of citric acid is done by the microorganism, Aspergillus niger by aerobic fermentation of sucrose in beet molasses, a mould belonging to the same family as the penicillins.

Chlorellin, contained in chlorella, acts like a natural antibiotic. In contrast to chemical antibiotics, it combats pathogenic bacteria without altering the intestinal flora.

The most well known examples of yeast fermentation are in the production of alcoholic drinks and the leavening of bread. For their participation in these two processes, yeasts are of major importance in the food industry. Varieties of the Saccharomyces cervisiae genus are the most common yeasts in fermented foods and beverages. 

Streptomycin is an antibiotic that inhibits both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria and is therefore a useful broad-spectrum antibiotic.