Through the hydrolysis of plant metabolite glucoconjugates, β-glucosidase activities of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) make a significant contribution to the dietary and sensory attributes of fermented food. Deglucosylation can release attractive flavour compounds from glucosylated precursors and increases the bioavailability of health-promoting plant metabolites as well as that of dietary toxins. This review brings the current literature on LAB β-glucosidases into context by providing an overview of the nutritional implications of LAB β-glucosidase activities. Based on biochemical and genomic information, the mechanisms that are currently considered to be critical for the hydrolysis of β-glucosides by intestinal and food-fermenting LAB will also be reviewed.
Keywords: cellobiose; galactosidase; glucosidase; phospho-glucosidase; phosphotransferase system.
© 2013 Federation of European Microbiological Societies. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. All rights reserved.