Straightforward bacterial-fungal fermentation between Lactobacillus plantarum and Pleurotus eryngii for synergistic improvement of bioactivity

Synergistic fermentation between bacteria and fungi has great potential in many industrial fields. Here, we investigated how bacterial-fungal fermentation can promote the bioactivity of edible-fungus. The submerged Lactobacillus plantarum culture actively produced acids incorporated with polysaccharides from β-glucan-rich Pleurotus eryngii as a substrate for fermentation that resulted in a low pH of submerged culture. Fermented P. eryngii with L. plantarum showed enhanced bioactivities, including anti-bacterial, antioxidant, and anti-allergic activities compared to hot water extract of P. eryngii. This result suggests that a synergistic fermentation between bacteria and fungi can apply to functional food making.