Molecular identification of microbial community in Chinese douchi during post-fermentation process

To track changes in dynamic microbial communities during post-fermentation process, traditional culture method, and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) were used to study the number and species of dominant microorganisms in douchi. The result of culturedependent method showed that the microbial number changed slightly since the 4th day while the DGGE indicated that the really steady-state was achieved from the 10th day. In addition, Lactococcus lactis subsp., Staphylococcus lentus, and 2 uncultured bacterium were identified to occupy the dominant positions in bacterial DGGE pattern, and Bacillus thermoamylovorans, Bacillus subtilis, Enterobacter spp., and Absidia corymbifera, Pichia guilliermondii, Pichia farinose were also detected from Bacillus and fungal DGGE patterns, respectively. In conclusion, some pathogenic microorganisms involving in the douchi fermentation had been detected throughout the post-fermentation process, and the combination of culturedependent and -independent method was proved to be effective in profiling microbial diversity.