Identification of probiotic strains of enterococcus and pediococcus isolated from two Iranian traditional fermented dairy– cereal food products (Kashk-e-Zard and Tarkhineh)

Kashk-e-Zard from Sistan and Baloochestan province and Tarkhineh from Hamedan and Kermanshah provinces are two cereal-dairy fermented products that are prepared by wheat based and a dairy product such as yogurt, fermented milk or doogh via fermentation process. Cereals as a functional food have a high protein digestibility and are also a fermentable substrate for the growth of probiotic microorganisms. In this study, Enterococcus and Pseudococcus genotypes were isolated from40 Kashk-e-Zard and Tarkhineh samples by microbial and biochemical methods, and then the bacterial genome was confirmed by the PCR method as part of the 16s rRNA encoding gene. The PCR fragments were sequenced and compared to the sequences in the gene bank and enterococcus and pediococcus strains were identified. Considering the processing of Kashk-e-Zard and Tarkhineh by using probiotic bacteria; therefore, isolation and identification of these strains and preserving of these genetic reserves, can be useful for the expanding its use and export to other countries.