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Microbiological changes in mawè during natural fermentation

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Abstract

Lactic acid bacteria increased from 3.2 × 106 and 1.6 × 107 c.f.u./g (wet wt) to 2 × 109 and 1.6 × 109 c.f.u./g after 12 to 24 h of fermentation of home-produced mawè (a dough produced from dehulled maize) and commercial mawè, respectively. In commercial mawè, the yeast count increased from 1.3 × 105 to 2.5 × 107 c.f.u./g after 48 h of fermentation before decreasing, whereas in the home-produced mawè it increased from 2.5 × 104 to 3.2 × 107 c.f.u./g after 72 h of fermentation; the dominant yeasts were mainly Candida krusei, although C. kefyr, C. glabrata and Saccharomyces cerevisiae were also present. Enterobacteriaceae counts increased slightly during the initial stage ofthe fermentation, but decreased below the detection level after 24 to 48 h. Enterobacter cloacae was mostly found in commercial mawè and Escherichia coli mostly in homeproduced mawè.

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D.J. Hounhouigan and C.M. Nago are with the Université Nationale du Bénin, Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Département de Nutrition et de Sciences Alimentaires, BP 526, Cotonou, Benin; M.J.R. Nout and F.M. Rombouts are with the Agricultural University, Department of Food Science, Bomenweg 2, 6703 HD Wageningen, The Netherlands. J.H. Houben is with Utrecht University, Department of the Science of Foods of Animal Origin, Yalelaan 2, 3508 TD Utrecht, The Netherlands.

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Hounhouigan, D.J., Nout, M.J.R., Nago, C.M. et al. Microbiological changes in mawè during natural fermentation. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 10, 410–413 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00144462

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