Lactobacillus helveticus

Taxobox
color = lightgrey
name = "Lactobacillus helveticus"
regnum = Bacteria
divisio = Firmicutes
classis = Bacilli
ordo = Lactobacillales
familia = Lactobacillaceae
genus = "Lactobacillus"
species = "L. helveticus"
binomial = "Lactobacillus helveticus"
binomial_authority = (Orla-Jensen 1919)
Bergey "et al." 1925

"Lactobacillus helveticus" is a lactic-acid producing rod shaped bacterium of the genus "Lactobacillus". It is most commonly used in the production of Swiss cheese and Emmental cheese but is also sometimes used in making other styles of cheese, such as Cheddar, Parmesan, romano, provolone, and mozzarella. The primary function of "L. helveticus" culture is to prevent bitterness and produce nutty flavors in the final cheese. In Swiss and Emmental cheese production, "L. helveticus" is used in conjunction with a "Propionibacter" culture, which is responsible for developing the holes (known as "eyes") through production of carbon dioxide gas.

Ingestion of powdered milk fermented with "L. helveticus" was shown to decrease blood pressure due to the presence of manufactured tripeptides that have ACE inhibitor activity. [Aihara K, Kajimoto O, Hirata H, Takahashi R, Nakamura Y. [http://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/full/24/4/257 Effect of powdered fermented milk with "Lactobacillus helveticus" on subjects with high-normal blood pressure or mild hypertension.] J Am Coll Nutr. 2005 Aug;24(4):257-65 PMID 16093403.]

The bacterium's specific name comes from "Helvetia", the Latin name for the region occupied by the ancient Helvetii (and for modern Switzerland).

References

ources

* [http://web.mst.edu/~microbio/BIO221_2005/L_helveticus.htm "Lactobacillus helveticus"]

References