Microbial Diversity and Quality-Related Physicochemical Properties of Spicy Cabbage in Northeastern China and Their Correlation Analysis.

Chinese spicy cabbage (CSC) is a popular special fermented food in Northeast China. The bacterial community and quality of CSC from different regions of northeastern China (Group_J: Jilin province, Group_L: Liaoning province, Group_H: Heilongjiang province) at retail (Group_P) and home-made (Group_C) were investigated in this study. The determination of the microbial community was achieved using high-throughput sequencing and the quality-related physicochemical characteristics included pH, salinity, total acid (TA), amino acid nitrogen (AAN), reducing sugar (RS), nitrite, and biogenic amines (BAs). Based on OPLS-DA analysis, there was a difference between the quality of Group_C and Group_P. No significant difference was observed in province grouping. Proteobacteria and Firmicutes were the dominant phyla, and the dominant genera were Lactobacillus , Pantoea , Weissella , and Pseudomonas . All groups had significant differences in community structure ( p < 0.05). Compared with Group_C, the relative abundance of opportunistic pathogens ( Pseudomonas and Serratia ) in Group_P was lower. Pseudomonas and Serratia were the biomarkers in Group_H. At the genus level, Lactobacillus s and Weissella had a positive correlation with pH, Cadaverrine, and salinity ( p < 0.05), however, they were negatively related to tryptamine. Pseudomonas was negatively correlated with salinity ( p < 0.05). Bacterial community and physicochemical parameters of CSC, as well as the correlation between them, were discussed in this study, providing a reference for future studies on CSC inoculation and fermentation.