Razi Journal of Medical Sciences

Introduction: The pickle and salted pickle, traditional fermented products, are popular in Iran. There has been done a lot of researches about these group of foods all over the world. According to few researches in this subject in Iran, the aim of this study was to isolate and identify the diversity of dominant lactic acid bacteria in pickles and salted pickles. Materials and Methods: This research was performed by analyzing 70 samples of different pickle and salted pickles. The isolates were identified as LAB by Gram staining and Catalase by using MRS agar. then those strains were identified at the species level by physiological tests such as NH3 production from arginine, CO2 production from glucose in MRS broth containing inverted Durham tubes, growth at temperatures of 15°C, 30°C, 45°C in MRS broth and Carbohydrate fermentation. Results: In total, 114 presumptive LAB with Gram-positive and Catalase-negative properties were obtained from these samples. The results revealed that all isolates were identified as L.plantarum, L.brevis, L.pentosus, L.casei, L.paracasei and Leu.mesenteroides. The most predominant LAB in these pickles was L. plantarum. Conclusion: The importance of LAB as an important group of probiotics and one of the most useful hurdles is clear. In other hand since vegetables are source of prebiotics, all kinds of pickles can be one of the best choices for producing different kinds of non dairy probiotic functional food products. The results indicate dominant LAB in traditional pickles and salted pickles produced in Tehran, Iran which provides raw data for further studies to improve traditional or industrial production.