Microbial Community and Diversity in Specialty Teas from Fujian

  Objective   Diversity and distribution of the microbial communities in the specialty teas produced in Fujian were studied.

  Method   Fifteen groups of well-known local teas in the province were collected for an analysis based on the high-throughput sequencing targeting 16S rRNA gene.

  Result   A total of 11 472 OTUs encompassing 37 phyla, 95 classes, 150 orders, 207 families, and 277 genera were isolated from the specimens. In the 3 categories, Dahongpao had the greatest richness on species; the Huacha was the most diversified; and, as oolong teas, Dahongpao and Tieguanyin had a similar microbial structure. In 10 groups of Dahongpao samples, the dominant genera were Lactococcus, Bifidobacterium, and Bacteroides; that in 2 groups of Huacha, Bacteroides; and those in 3 groups of Tieguanyin, Lactococcus and Bifidobacterium. Five of the top 10 dominant genera in the teas were lactic acid bacteria. According to the co-occurrence analysis on network, the lactic acid bacteria exhibited a synergistic growth relationship with most of the other significantly associated species.

  Conclusion  Bacilli and Actinobacteria were the predominant bacteria found in Dahongpao and Tieguanyin, while Clostridia and Bacteroidia in Huacha. A bacterial taxonomy analysis indicated that tea category differentiated the structure of their bacterial communities. Overall, lactic acid bacteria dominantly existed in these teas produced in Fujian.