Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, United States.
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, United States.
Elife. 2021 Jan 26;10:e61644. doi: 10.7554/eLife.61644.
Humans have relied on sourdough starter microbial communities to make leavened bread for thousands of years, but only a small fraction of global sourdough biodiversity has been characterized. Working with a community-scientist network of bread bakers, we determined the microbial diversity of 500 sourdough starters from four continents. In sharp contrast with widespread assumptions, we found little evidence for biogeographic patterns in starter communities. Strong co-occurrence patterns observed in situ and recreated in vitro demonstrate that microbial interactions shape sourdough community structure. Variation in dough rise rates and aromas were largely explained by acetic acid bacteria, a mostly overlooked group of sourdough microbes. Our study reveals the extent of microbial diversity in an ancient fermented food across diverse cultural and geographic backgrounds.
几千年来，人类一直依靠酸面团微生物群落来制作发酵面包，但全球酸面团生物多样性只有一小部分得到了描述。我们与面包师社区科学家网络合作，确定了来自四大洲的 500 个酸面团发酵剂的微生物多样性。与普遍的假设形成鲜明对比的是，我们几乎没有发现发酵剂群落存在生物地理模式的证据。现场观察到的强烈共现模式和在体外重现的模式表明，微生物相互作用塑造了酸面团群落结构。面团发酵速度和香气的变化主要由醋酸菌解释，而醋酸菌是一个在酸面团微生物中被严重忽视的群体。我们的研究揭示了在不同文化和地理背景下，这种古老发酵食品中的微生物多样性程度。
