Characterization of Leuconostoc strains isolated from fresh anchovy (Engraulis anchoita).

The biomass value of anchovy (Engraulis anchoita), the most abundant fi sh species in the Southwest Atlantic Ocean, is considered to be around 4,300,000 tons, with a maximum sustainable yield of 1,140,000 tons (Cabrer et al., 2002), being at present under exploited at 27,800 tons/year (SAGPyA, 2008). Recently, as part of the FAO’s project Towards a Sustainable Aquaculture: Selected Issues and Guidelines, which addresses the use of wild fi sh to feed cultured fi sh and its implications to food security and poverty alleviation, a study on the use of small pelagic fi sh for new product development has been carried out (Madureira et al., 2007). Although this resource is shared by Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina in the so-called “anchoita Bonaerense” stock, anchovy is processed for human consumption only in Argentina, where a diversifi ed production (whole frozen, salt-cured, marinated and tinned anchovy fi llets) targets mainly the external market. E. anchoita is described as a species with highlipid content which undergoes signifi cant variations according to the time of the year (Yeannes and Casales, 1995). Due to lipid oxidation, anchovy is highly perishable; however high-polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-3) content (Massa et al., 2007) makes anchovy a healthy raw material; its dietary intake is in fact inversely associated with cardiovascular diseases in population studies (Cicero et al., 2009). Although it has often been suggested that lactic acid bacteria (LAB) found on fi sh might be regarded as land-borne contaminants, species of certain genera are not uncommon in aquatic environments (Stiles and Holzapfel, 1997). Several studies have demonstrated that LAB have been found in marine and freshwater fi sh (mainly from the gastrointestinal tract and gills) and their surrounding environment (Bucio et al., 2006; González et al., 2000; Ringø et al., 2000, 2002; Seppola et al., 2006). Moreover, LAB have recently become a major source of concern in aquaculture due to their pathological signifi cance (Michel et al., 1997). On the other hand, LAB growth on fi sh may be stimulated by different processes (drying, salting, marinating and vacuum-packaging) constituting the major part of the fi nal product microbiota (Gancel et al., 1997; Lyhs et al., 2002; Thapa et al., 2006; Tomé et al., 2007). Since Argentina has a long tradition processing fresh raw anchovy for human consumption, a preliminary study was conducted to identify LAB in view to be used as a functional starter culture for anchovy-based product diversifi cation. Fresh anchovies (E. anchoita), caught between 34 and 36° Atlantic South latitude were provided by a fi sh processing factory from Mar del Plata, Argentina. For microbial analysis, samples from the 2005‒2006 fi sh J. Gen. Appl. Microbiol., 56, 175‒180 (2010)