Berry kefirs as functional non-dairy beverages: linking microbial activity, phenolic profiles, and immunomodulatory properties

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorSalas-Millán, J.Á.
dc.contributor.authorIguaz, A.
dc.contributor.authorAguayo, E.
dc.contributor.authorMelgar, S.
dc.contributor.authorAznar, A.
dc.contributor.funderMinisterio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, MCIU
dc.contributor.funderCARM
dc.contributor.funderFundación Séneca, FS
dc.contributor.funderEuropean Commission, EU, PRTR-C17
dc.contributor.funderScience Foundation Ireland, SFI, SFI/12/RC/2273_P2
dc.date.accessioned2026-05-13T13:50:02Z
dc.date.available2026-05-13T13:50:02Z
dc.date.issued2026-05-04
dc.description.abstractThe present study investigated the physicochemical, sensory, and biological properties of non-dairy kefirs produced by fermenting strawberry, blueberry, and blackberry juices with kefir grains. Fermentation was performed at 21 ± 1 °C for 48 h, followed by refrigerated storage at 4 ± 1 °C for 7 days. All fruit kefirs exhibited a decrease in total soluble solids and pH, and an increase in lactic and acetic acids, confirming the active metabolism of the kefir consortia. Viable mesophilic and lactic acid bacteria counts increased from 2.4–4.2 to 7.0–9.0 log CFU/mL after fermentation and remained stable during refrigeration, whereas microbial viability declined in the water kefir control. Polyphenolic profiling by HPLC-QTOF revealed extensive transformation of anthocyanins, phenolic acids, and flavonols; the blackberry kefir retained the highest content of cyanidin derivatives and showed greater phenolic stability. Total phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity values decreased after fermentation (up to 40%) but remained stable during refrigeration in the blackberry and blueberry kefirs, whilst being negligible in the water kefir control. Sensory evaluation indicated high consumer acceptance (flavour ≈4/5), particularly for the blueberry kefir, with flavour emerging as the main driver of acceptability, and polyphenol composition (notably total anthocyanins and TPC) shaping sensory quality. In vitro assays using HCT116-Dual reporter cells demonstrated the anti-inflammatory potential of preferentially strawberry juice, and after fermentation and storage under basal and inflammatory conditions. Blackberry kefir partly inhibited TNF-α-induced IL-8 secretion, consistent with its anthocyanin profile. These findings demonstrate that fruit-based kefirs are promising non-dairy fermented beverages in which the fruit matrix enhances microbial performance and phytochemical stability, representing a new generation of naturally fermented beverages with health-promoting potential.en
dc.description.sponsorshipThe authors gratefully acknowledge the company Masía Ciscar S.A. (Huelva, Spain) for providing the financial support and supplying the fresh fruit materials used in this study. This work is also part of the AGROALNEXT programme and was supported by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (MICIU) with funding from the European Union Next Generation EU (PRTR-C17.I1) and by Fundación Séneca – Science and Technology Agency of the Region of Murcia (CARM) and by a centre grant from Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) to APC Microbiome Ireland (SFI/12/RC/2273_P2). We thank Concetta Libero and Carmela Livigni for collaborating on this study during their Bachelor's degree Erasmus exchange programme.
dc.description.versionPublished Version
dc.format.extent12
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen
dc.identifier.articleid102963
dc.identifier.authororcidSalas-Millán, J.Á.§0000-0002-8948-9193
dc.identifier.authororcidIguaz, A.
dc.identifier.authororcidAguayo, E.
dc.identifier.authororcidMelgar, S.
dc.identifier.authororcidAznar, A.
dc.identifier.citationSalas-Millán, J Á, Iguaz, A, Aguayo, E, Melgar, S & Aznar, A 2026, 'Berry kefirs as functional non-dairy beverages: linking microbial activity, phenolic profiles, and immunomodulatory properties', J. Agric. Food. Res., vol. 28, 102963. < https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105037735149?origin=resultslist >
dc.identifier.issn2666-1543
dc.identifier.journaltitleJ. Agric. Food. Res.
dc.identifier.otherRIS: urn:ADFA39ED46E8B0F56D0B7C4041A6C5EB
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10468/18753
dc.identifier.volume28
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherElsevier B.V.
dc.relation.urihttps://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105037735149
dc.relation.urihttps://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105037735149?origin=resultslist
dc.rights© 2026, the Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
dc.rights.accessrightsopen access
dc.rights.licensenameAttribution 4.0 International
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.statusPeer reviewed
dc.subjectBlackberry
dc.subjectBlueberry
dc.subjectEpithelial cells
dc.subjectFruit-based beverage
dc.subjectInflammation
dc.subjectLC-MS
dc.subjectPolyphenols
dc.subjectStrawberry
dc.subject[APCMicrobiome]
dc.titleBerry kefirs as functional non-dairy beverages: linking microbial activity, phenolic profiles, and immunomodulatory propertiesen
dc.typeArticle (peer-reviewed)
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
Thumbnail Image
Name:
1-s2.0-S2666154326003339-main.pdf
Size:
6.93 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Published Version
Download
Thumbnail Image
Name:
1-s2.0-S2666154326003339-mmc1.docx
Size:
165.47 KB
Format:
Microsoft Word XML
Download
Collections
APC Microbiome Ireland