THE METHODOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF USING REAL-TIME PCR IN ACETOBACTER DETECTION

Abstract

Acetic acid bacteria occur in sugar and alcoholised, slightly acid niches such as flowers, fruits, beer, wine, cider, vinegar, souring fruit juices and honey. On these substrates they oxidize the sugars and alcohols, resulting an accumulation of organic acids as final products. These transformations are of considerable interest for the biotechnological industry. The best known industrial application of acetic acid bacteria is vinegar production. The study used a method Real-Time PCR allows the quantitative detection of the members of the acetic acid bacteria group including the well-known Acetobacter, Gluconacetobacter and Gluconobacter species, and also other rare occurring but also acetic acid producing representatives as Acidisphaera sp., Acidocella sp., Acidomonas sp., Asaia sp., Granulibacter, Kozakia sp. and Swaminathania sp. The main objective of the present work is to test fast, sensitive and reliable technique such as Real-Time PCR and to detect acetic acid bacteria group without plating, isolated from white wine vinegar and directly from vinegar and the acetic acid bacteria grown in glucose medium (GYC) at 30°C, 48 h. The results obtained indicate that the amount of live acetic acid bacteria in vinegar during the fermentation process is not sufficient to detect them in this direct way.