酵母菌的益生功能及在食品中的应用

酵母菌与我们生活密不可分，已在食品、饮料、饲料、工业乙醇等领域得到广泛应用。酵母菌除了发酵功能外，在益生方面也显示出了重要作用。与传统益生菌相比，酵母菌在治疗腹泻疾病、提高免疫力、增强营养等方面都有显著效果，且酵母菌的代谢产物（二氧化碳和乙醇）对食品种类和风味都有积极贡献。酵母菌在食品中应用的文献数不胜数，但描述其益生功能的文献却不多。本文综述了近几年有关酵母菌在抑菌、降胆固醇、治疗腹泻方面的研究进展以及在酒、乳品、酵素生产中的应用，同时对酵母菌的安全性、应用局限及未来发展做了展望。

Beneficial Effects of Yeasts and Applications in Foods

Yeast is closely related to our daily life and is widely used in the food, beverage, feed and industrial alcohol fields. Apart from functioning as a fermentation starter, yeast shows important probiotic properties. Compared with traditional probiotics, yeast is more effective in the treatment of diarrhea, immunity improvement and nutritional enhancement. In addition, yeast produces metabolites (carbon dioxide and ethanol) that contributes positively to the varieties and flavor of foods. While numerous studies about the application of yeast have been reported, its probiotic function has been rarely concerned. In this paper, we review recent applications of yeast in antibacterial treatment, lowering cholesterol levels and diarrhea treatment, as well as in the production of alcohol, dairy products and enzymes. Besides, the safety, application limitations and prospects of yeast are also discussed.