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BACKGROUND Recently, gut microbiota has been associated with various diseases other than intestinal disease. Thus, there has been rapid growth in the study of gut microbiota. Considering the numerous factors influencing gut microbiota such as age, diet, etc ., area-based research is required. Indonesia has numerous different tribes and each of these tribes have different lifestyles. Hence, it is expected that each tribe has a specific gut microbiota. A deeper insight into the composition of gut microbiota can be used to determine the condition of gut microbiota in Indonesians and to consider which treatment may be suitable and effective to improve health status. AIM To investigate the gut microbiota of Indonesian subjects represented by Javanese and Balinese tribes by analyzing fecal samples. METHODS Fecal samples were collected from a total of 80 individuals with 20 in each of the young groups ranging from 25-45 years and the elderly group aged 70 years or more from two different regions, Yogyakarta and Bali. Fecal sample collection was performed at the end of the assessment period (day 14 ± 1 d) during which time the subjects were not allowed to consume probiotic or antibiotic products. The quantification of various Clostridium subgroups, Lactobacillus subgroups, Enterococcus, Streptococcus, Staphylococcus , Bacteroides fragilis group and Prevotella , Bifidobacterium and Atopobium cluster, Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas was performed using the Yakult intestinal flora-scan (YIF-SCAN). RESULTS The bacterial population in younger subjects’ feces was higher than that in the elderly population, with a total of approximately 10.0 – 10.6 log 10 bacterial cells/g feces. The most abundant bacteria in all groups were Clostridium , followed by Prevotella, Atopobium, Bifidobacterium and Bacteroides . In the elderly, an increase in Enterobacteriaceae , Coliform and Escherichia coli was found. In terms of bacterial counts in Yogyakarta, total bacteria, Clostridium coccoides ( C. coccoides ) group, Bifidobacterium , Prevotella , Lactobacillus plantarum subgroup, and Streptococcus were significantly higher ( P < 0.05) in younger than elderly subjects, while the Lactobacillus gasseri subgroup, Lactobacillus casei subgroup, and Lactobacillus reut...

Lactic acid bacteria have been isolated from several Indonesian indigenous fermented foods and screened for the potential strains as probiotic candidates. The aim of this study was to evaluate sensory properties and respondents’ preference of yogurt-like set and yogurt-like drink with various Indonesian indigenous probiotic strains produced by dairy industry. Indigenous probiotics of Lactobacillus plantarum MUT-7 and Lactobacillus plantarum DAD-13 were used to produce yogurt-like set and yogurt-like drink. Family perception toward yogurt-like drink was performed in Yogyakarta involving 100 family members. The yogurt-like products were also compared to yogurt containing commercial Lactobacilus bulgaricus and Streptococus thermophilus or commercial yogurt produced by dairy company. Several sensory evaluation toward sensory properties and panelist’s preference were performed in different cities.  The result showed that the indigenous probiotic L. plantarum DAD-13 and L. plantarum MUT-7 were potential to be used as a starter culture for the production of yogurt-like set and yogurt-like drink. The combination of indigenous probiotics and indigenous lactic acid bacteria S. thermophilus DAD-11 resulted in better sensory properties of yogurt set compared to combination of L. bulgaricus and S. thermophilus.

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Among the indigenous fermented foods, shrimp paste has been traditionally consumed in Southeast Asia as a condiment to its delicacy and nutritional value. In addition, shrimp paste is added to main dishes to enhance the salty and umami taste. Shrimp paste is named differently in Southeast Asia countries and possesses varied processing methods and microbial composition. This paper aimed to review the production process and microbial composition of shrimp paste in various Southeast Asia countries: mam tom in Vietnam, kapi in Cambodia and Thailand, belacan in Malaysia, terasi in Indonesia, ngapi in Myanmar, and bagoong-alamang in Philippines. Generally, the shrimp paste is made by mixing the ground shrimp with salt at the beginning, followed by fermentation and drying process. Interestingly, some shrimp paste is made through multiple fermentation and drying process to obtain desired consistency. Lactic acid bacteria were identified in most of shrimp paste in Southeast Asia.