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An analysis of soil chemical properties and microbial community compositions in spring, summer, and autumn over a growing season was conducted at three tea farms managed using the same cultivation method on Jeju Island, Korea. The contents of SOM (soil organic matter), TC (total C), TN (total N), TS (total S), potassium (K+), and lithium (Li+) increased from spring to autumn, and significant differences were observed among tea farms. Across all tea farms, the dominant bacterial phyla were Gammaproteobacteria (25.84 ± 1.66%), Alphaproteobacteria (17.99 ± 0.51%), Actinobacteria (18.38 ± 1.29%), and Acidobacteria (14.49 ± 0.79%), and the dominant fungal phyla were Ascomycota (45.16 ± 1.57%), Basidiomycota (26.76 ± 1.79%), and Mortierellomycota (23.59 ± 2.43%). We found distinct differences in the composition of the bacterial community among tea farms, whereas strong seasonal variations were observed in the composition of the fungal community. Important factors in determination of the bacterial relative abundance included water content, SOM, soil pH, EC (electrical conductivity), and contents of DOC (dissolved organic C), ammonium (NH4+), calcium (Ca2+), K+, and magnesium (Mg2+); however, only EC, DOC, and nitrate (NO3−) were important factors in the fungal relative abundance. The differences in soil chemical properties and microbial community compositions among tea farms could be attributed to the differences in environmental factors depending on the geographic location of tea farms. Seasonal variations in the contents of chemical components of tea leaves, such as catechins, total amino acids, theanine, and caffeine, were greater than the differences among the farms. The quality parameters of tea showed significant correlation with soil fungal diversity indices, indicating the possibility for use of soil fungal diversity as a biological indicator of tea quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gastric inflammation is an indication of gastric ulcers and possible other underlying gastric malignancies. Epidemiological studies have revealed that several Asian countries, including South Korea, suffer from a high incidence of gastric diseases derived from high levels of stress, alcoholic consumption, pyloric infection and usage of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Clinical treatments of gastric ulcers are generally limited to proton pump inhibitors that neutralize the stomach acid, and the application of antibiotics for Helicobacter pylori eradication, both of which are known to have a negative effect on the gut microbiota. The potential of probiotics for alleviating gastrointestinal diseases such as intestinal bowel syndrome and intestinal bowel disease receives increasing scientific interest. Probiotics may support the amelioration of disease-related symptoms through modulation of the gut microbiota without causing dysbiosis. In this study the potential of Lactobacillus plantarum APSulloc 331261 (GTB1TM), isolated from green tea, was investigated for alleviating gastric inflammation in an alcohol induced gastric ulcer murine model (positive control). Treatment with the test strain significantly influenced the expression of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory biomarkers, interleukin 6 (IL6) and interleukin 10 (IL10), of which the former was down- and the latter up-regulated when the alcohol induced mice were treated with the test strain. This positive effect was also indicated by less severe gastric morphological changes and the histological score of the gastric tissues. A significant increase in the abundance of Akkermansia within the GTB1TM treated group compared to the positive control group also correlated with a decrease in the ratio of acetate over propionate. The increased levels of propionate in the GTB1TM group appear to result from the impact of the test strain on the microbial population and the resulting metabolic activities. Moreover, there was a significant increase in beta-diversity in the group that received GTB1TM over that of the alcohol induced control group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]