Bacteriocins of Lactobacillus plantarum strains from fermented foods.

Bacteriocin-producing strains may be used as protective cultures to improve the microbial safety of foods. The crude or purified form of these antimicrobial agents may also be applied directly as food preservative. This review gives survey of the different bacteriocins produced by Lactobacillus plantarum isolated from fermented food products with particular emphasis on their genetic and biochemical properties. A number of bacteriocins are produced by L. plantarum. These include plantaricin B, plantaricin BN, plantaricin A, plantaricin C, plantaricin S and T, plantaricin F, plantaricin C19 and SA6 and other unnamed bacteriocins. However, with the exception of plantaricin A, information on the genetic and biochemical characteristics of L. plantarum bacteriocins is still scant.