Selection of amine-oxidizing dairy lactic acid bacteria and identification of the enzyme and gene involved in the decrease of biogenic amines

Accumulation of biogenic amines (BAs) in cheese and other foods is a matter of public health concern. The aim of this study was to identify the enzyme activities responsible for BA degradation in lactic acid bacteria which were previously isolated from traditional Sicilian and Apulian cheeses. The selected strains would control the concentration of BAs during cheese manufacture. First, 431 isolates not showing genes encoding the decarboxylases responsible for BA formation were selected using PCR-based methods. Ninety-four out of the 431 isolates degraded BAs (2-phenylethylamine, cadaverine, histamine, putrescine, spermine, spermidine, tyramine, or tryptamine) during cultivation on chemically defined medium. As shown by random amplification of polymorphic DNA-PCR and partial sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, 78 of the 94 strains were Lactobacillus species (Lactobacillus casei, Lb. fermentum, Lb. parabuchneri, Lb. paracasei, Lb. paraplantarum, and Lb. rhamnosus), Leuconostoc species (Leuconostoc lactis and Ln. mesenteroides), Pediococcus pentosaceus, Lactococcus lactis, Streptococcus species (Streptococcus gallolyticus and S. thermophilus), Enterococcus lactis, and Weissella paramesenteroides. A multicopper oxidase-hydrolyzing BA was purified from the most active strain, Lb. paracasei subsp. paracasei CB9CT. The gene encoding the multicopper oxidase was sequenced and was also detected in other amine-degrading strains of Lb. fermentum, Lb. paraplantarum, and P. pentosaceus. Lb. paracasei subsp. paracasei CB9CT and another strain (CACIO6CT) of the same species that was able to degrade all the BAs were singly used as adjunct starters for decreasing the concentration of histamine and tyramine in industrial Caciocavallo cheese. The results of this study disclose a feasible strategy for increasing the safety of traditional cheeses while maintaining their typical sensorial traits.