The benefits about Streptococcus thermophilus

Streptococcus thermophilus is a Gram-positive bacterium which is also classified as a lactic acid bacterium. It is often found in fermented milk products such as yoghurt, cheeses and milk drinks. It is just one of the many beneficial bacteria that is added to food and drinks to enhance a person’s immune system functions and to help keep a healthy colon too. The ability of Streptococcus thermophilus to survive is simple, it has a thick cell wall that can help survive in extreme temperatures. Dairy products are heated for processing up to 100 degrees Celsius and these bacteria can withstand these extremes in temperature very well.

Streptococcus thermophilus is one of the most commercially important of all lactic acid bacteria。Streptococcus thermophilus is a Gram-positive facultative anaerobe. It is a cytochrome-, oxidase- and catalase-negative organism that is nonmotile, non-spore forming and homofermentative. Streptococcus thermophilus is an alpha-hemolytic species of the viridans group. It is also classified as a lactic acid bacteria (LAB).  S. thermophilus is physiologically and biochemically less versatile than other lactic acid bacteria, the reality is that this organism is actually very versatile. Research during the past two decades has revealed that S. thermophilus has properties that make it one of the most commercially important of all lactic acid bacteria. Streptococcus thermophilus is used, along with Lactobacillus spp., as a starter culture for the manufacture of several important fermented dairy foods, including yogurt and Mozzarella cheese.

Streptococcus thermophilus is an essential lactic acid bacterium used for commercial purposes, which includes the production of milk, cheese, and other dairy products. This organism is a thermophilic Gram-positive bacterium with an optimal growth rate at 45 °C. It is also capable of generating energy, in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), by aerobic respiration with the presence of oxygen; however, without the presence of oxygen, it still can produce ATP through fermentation. S. thermophilus lacks cytochrome, oxidase, and catalase enzymes. It does not have motility and it does not form spores. Although S. thermophilus is closely related to other pathogenic streptococci (such as S. pneumoniae and S. pyogenes), S. thermophilus is classified as a non-pathogenic, alpha-hemolytic species that is part of the viridians group. The increasing consumer need for dairy products and booming manufacture of dairy products  led to the investigation and sequencing of S. thermophilus.

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