Bacteriocins produced by lactic acid bacteria have a bactericidal effect against Gram-positive bacteria including foodborne pathogens such as Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus cereus, and also inhibit the outgrowth of bacterial spores. Most of these bacteriocins are degradable in human tract, and heat stable, so that bacteriocins produced by lactic acid bacteria have potential use as natural food preservatives. Actually, nisin produced by the food-grade bacterium Lactococcus lactis is recognized as GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) substance and widely used as a preservative in the food industry. In recent years there has been a considerable increase in studies of bacteriocins produced by lactic acid bacteria not only on their structure, biosynthesis and mechanisms of pore-formation, but also on their potential applications as food preservatives. This review describes the current knowledge about the properties, biosynthesis, functional aspects, producer self-protection and resistance of a broad range of bacteriocins from lactic acid bacteria as well as the applications.

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Lactic acid bacteria, Chizuka, Yasaka 5B,7B,8B, and 9B, which have been previously isolated from different well-aged Nukadoko in the Northern Kyushu area, were investigated for bacteriocin production and purification. Their isolates were shown to produce bacteriocin-like substances. However, the properties of these substances were surprisingly identical to those observed with nisin Z produced by Lactococcus lactis IO-1, previously isolated from kitchen drain of a home in the City of Fukuoka. It was shown in particular that bacteriocins from Lc. lactis IO-1 and the studied isolates displayed the same spectrum of activity with no cross inhibition, identical proteolytic patterns and kinetics of cell destruction, the same retention time in a reversed-phase chromatography and the same UV absorption spectrum. Taking into account the fact that identification of the isolates revealed the same biochemical and genetic patterns as Lc. lactis IO-1, it was therefore concluded that strains Chizuka, Yasaka 5B,7B,8B, and 9B are most likely to be nisin Z producers which could in fact be identical to Lc. lactis IO-1.

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