Food and Humanity 1 (2023) 404–414 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Food and Humanity journal homepage: www.editorialmanager.com/foohum/journal_overview.html The efect of Lactobacillus plantarum LP-115 strain on improving the savor and aroma of milk containing grape sap through fermentation Seyed Mehrdad Mirsalami ⁎ ,1 , Afshar Alihosseini ⁎⁎ ,2 Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran ARTICLE INFO Keywords: Lactobacillus plantarum Fermentation Milk Grape sap Fatty acid ABSTRACT Nowadays, maintaining the health of the body and choosing food and drinks with high nutritional value has become a general concern. Milk-containing grape sap (MGS) is a novel and emerging drink in countries of the world, especially Iran. Consumption of raw milk mixed with grape sap may not have a pleasant taste for some consumers. To solve this problem, mild fermentation of MGS with Lactobacillus plantarum LP-115 was proposed, which improves the drink's initial unpleasant taste and preserves the milk's enzyme balance due to heat. Gas chromatography - amino acid analyzer and mass spectrometry were used to evaluate the efect of LP-115 strain on free fatty acids (FAA) and aromatic ingredients. After 16 h of fermentation by LP-115, the MGS exhibited high levels of antioxidants (543.56 mg/L), sweet amino acids (293.47 mg/L), essential amino acids (49.66 mg/L), and unsaturated fatty acids (UFA: 2774.51 mg/L), according to the results obtained. The results indicate that increased levels of umami and sweet compounds, as well as UFAs, en- hanced the aroma and functional properties of the fermented MGS. Additionally, the study found that reduced aldehyde levels and increased ketone, ester, acid, and alcohol levels contributed to the improved favor quality of MGS. This study establishes a theoretical foundation for the industrial-scale production of fermented MGS. 1. Introduction The addition of chemical preservatives in the food and dairy in- dustries has led to a general concern in society, especially for people who prioritize healthy food free of any harmful additives. (Faustino et al., 2019). However, individuals are worried about the desirable application of these chemical additives in their daily diet. Because of this, the demand for nutritious foods free of artifcial additives is much higher than before (Teshome et al., 2022). The fact that there is a strong preference for low-processed foods has supported the seek for low- calorie ingredients, among which probiotic compositions such as Lac- tobacillus accomplish these demands. The human gut contains a variety of bacteria that are benefcial for the optimal digestion of food (Hemarajata & Versalovic, 2012). Some of these bacteria, known as probiotics, are widely recommended for treatment and prevention by nutritionists and physicians (Valdovinos-García et al., 2019). In recent years, it has been reported the efcacy not only on lactose intolerance (Wu et al., 2022) but also on treatment of public infections, promoting digestion, enhancing nutrient absorption, supporting immune function, and maintaining a healthy intestinal environment. Grape sap is considered a delicious and popular drink from me- tropolis to remote areas, especially in the Middle East. Many people experience problems such as diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain after drinking milk, which persist even after consuming lactose-free milk. (Ndayisaba et al., 2022). Owing to their warm temperament and rich Vitamin, grape sap has attained increasing attention by consumers (Umair et al., 2022). The combination of grape sap with milk contains nutrients such as vitamins, carbohydrates, proteins, and poly- unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) (Kandylis et al., 2021). Daily con- sumption of fortifed milk considerably advantage the safety of the https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foohum.2023.06.013 Received 29 March 2023; Received in revised form 2 June 2023; Accepted 8 June 2023 2949-8244/© 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. ]] ]] ]]]]]] ⁎ Correspondence to: Department of Chemical Engineering, Islamic Azad University, Central Tehran Branch, P.O. Box: 34158-35175, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran. ⁎⁎ Correspondence to: Department of Chemical Engineering, Islamic Azad University, Central Tehran Branch, P.O. Box: 14676-8683, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran. E-mail addresses: m.mirsalami.eng@iauctb.ac.ir (S.M. Mirsalami), Afs.alihosseini@iauctb.ac.ir (A. Alihosseini). 1 ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9396-8595. 2 ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6750-720X.