Phage-Resistant Starters

lactis and Strep, thermophilus are the most extensively used LAB species in dairy fermentative processes, thus several phages infecting them have been isolated and characterized in detail (Sudrez et al. 2002 Emond and Moineau 2007, Quiberoni et al. 2010). The extended co-survival of LAB and phages within the same environment has prompted the acquisition of a variety of native bacteriophage defense systems. These mechanisms include inhibition of phage adsorption, blocking of DNA injection, restriction/modification systems, abortive infection (Moineau and Levesque 2005), and the novel clustered interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) systems. 

The generation of BIMs is advantageous for the dairy industry since it offers a direct food-grade mechanism for producing strains with the capacity to evade phage attacks. Based on the CRISPR 

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Design of phage-resistant starter strains conjugation of natural phage resistance systems (i.e., restriction/ modification systems). 

Phage resistant strains or strains with distinct phage susceptibility patterns that retain their technological traits are in great demand to facilitate starter rotation schemes. This has been one of the main driving forces promoting the study of phage-host interactions that has contributed to the discovery of natural resistance mechanisms in many LAB strains (Sturino and Klaenhammer 2006 Mahony... 

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