Exopolysaccharides (EPS) production is a characteristic that has been widely described for many lactic acid bacteria (LAB) of different genera and species, but little is known about the relationship between the functional properties of the producing bacteria and EPS synthesis. Although many studies were addressed towards the application of EPS-producing LAB in the manufacture of several dairy products (fermented milk, cheese) due to their interesting technological properties (increased hardness, water holding capacity, viscosity, etc.), there are not many reports about the functional properties of the EPS extract itself, especially for the genus Lactobacillus. The aim of the present revision is to focus on the species Lactobacillus fermentum with reported functional properties, with particular emphasis on those strains capable of producing EPS, and try to establish if there is any linkage between this property and their functional/probiotic roles, considering the most recent bibliography.

中文翻译：

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发酵乳杆菌：EPS的生产能力是否对功能特性负责？

胞外多糖（EPS）的产生是已被广泛描述为许多不同属和种的乳酸菌（LAB）的特征，但对于产生菌的功能特性与EPS合成之间的关系知之甚少。尽管由于其有趣的技术性能（增加的硬度，保水能力，粘度等），针对EPS生产的LAB在几种乳制品（发酵乳，奶酪）的制造中的应用进行了许多研究，但并不多关于EPS提取物本身的功能特性的报道，特别是对于乳杆菌属。本修订的目的是着重研究具有报道的功能特性的发酵乳杆菌，特别着重那些能够产生EPS的菌株，