''Clostridium tyrobutyricum'' is a rod-shaped, Gram-positive bacterium that grows under anaerobic conditions and produces

butyric acid Butyric acid (; from grc, βούτῡρον, meaning "butter"), also known under the systematic name butanoic acid, is a straight-chain alkyl carboxylic acid with the chemical formula CH3CH2CH2CO2H. It is an oily, colorless liquid with an unpl ...

acetic acid Acetic acid , systematically named ethanoic acid , is an acidic, colourless liquid and organic compound with the chemical formula (also written as , , or ). Vinegar is at least 4% acetic acid by volume, making acetic acid the main componen ...

and

hydrogen Hydrogen is the chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. Hydrogen is the lightest element. At standard conditions hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules having the formula . It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic ...

gas as the major fermentation products from

glucose Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, usi ...

and

xylose Xylose ( grc, ξύλον, , "wood") is a sugar first isolated from wood, and named for it. Xylose is classified as a monosaccharide of the aldopentose type, which means that it contains five carbon atoms and includes an aldehyde functional gro ...

The late-blowing defect in cheese

''Clostridium tyrobutyricum'' spores present in raw milk ferments lactate causing the "late-blowing" defect in high-pH cheeses such as

Emmentaler Emmental, Emmentaler, or Emmenthal is a yellow, medium-hard cheese that originated in the area around Emmental, in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is classified as a Swiss-type or Alpine cheese. Emmental was first mentioned in written re ...

, Gouda or

Edammer Edam ( nl, Edammer, ) is a semi-hard cheese that originated in the Netherlands, and is named after the town of Edam in the province of North Holland. Edam is traditionally sold in flat-ended spheres with a pale yellow interior and a coat, or rin ...

. Even low spore densities of this anaerobe in milk used for cheese production can bring about this phenomenon, if the growth conditions are suitable. This defect is characterized by eyes, slits, and cracks caused by the production of the gas bubbles as well as abnormal cheese flavor from the Butyric acid. This defect can create considerable loss of product.

References

External links

Clostridium tyrobutyricum ATCC 25755

Type strain of ''Clostridium tyrobutyricum'' at Bac''Dive'' - the Bacterial Diversity Metadatabase
Gram-positive bacteria tyrobutyricum Bacteria described in 1935 {{Clostridia-stub