Microbiome analysis of surface-ripened soft cheeses

The objective of this project was to identify microbiome differences between surface-ripened soft cheeses (SRC) that are associated with differential growth of Listeria monocytogenes within those cheeses. Thirty-nine SRC were collected from retail and inoculated with L. monocytogenes, and pathogen growth was monitored over 12 days at refrigerated temperatures. In parallel, the taxonomic profiles of the cheese microbiomes were measured using a combination of 16S rRNA gene targeted amplicon sequencing and shotgun metagenomic sequencing.