The Kombucha Consumer Research Group^TM was formed as a research coalition in 1995. It consisted of three Utah business which shared time and financial resources to conduct and compile contemporary research on the topic of Kombucha. This coalition consisted of: Information Resources, LC (Michael Roussin), in conjunction with San Rafael Chemical Services, Inc. and Earth Net Consulting, LC. SRCS is a commercial analytical organic chemistry laboratory and ENC was a commercial environmental microbiology laboratory.

    Information Resources, LC ("IRLC") was formed specifically to conduct Kombucha research and disseminate that information. San Rafael Chemical Services, Inc. ("SRCS") is a commercial chemistry laboratory licensed by the State of Utah. It routinely performs complex organic chemical analyses for food, vitamin, and pharmaceutical companies. The laboratory is equipped for a variety of chemical analyses using gas chromatography, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and mass spectrometry (MS).

Prior to commencing testing on the colonies and ferments of other growers, a series of tests were conducted to assure a high level of confidence in reported findings. These tests included:

Gas chromatography/positive electron ionization mass spectrometry.

Reverse phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography ("HPLC") using detection by:

Photodiode array ("PDAD") scanning UV

Mass spectrometry interfaced to the Liquid Chromatograph using particle beam and also buffer assisted, filament mediated, positive thermospray chemical ionization

HPLC size exclusion using PDAD

HPLC cation exchange using PDAD

More than 300 HPLC/MS/PDAD analyses were conducted on Kombucha before the first grower's colony was analyzed.

    Before we report our test findings, it seems appropriate to share a few observations regarding chromatography. Chromatography is a means of separating as completely as possible the components in a mixture so that they can be more easily identified and quantified. Results are based on two criteria. The first criterion is the closeness of a comparison between the time it takes unknown components to move through the separation media (for instance, through the chromatography column) in comparison to the time required for known reference materials ("standards") to flow through the same media. The second criterion is the similarity in the detector response between standards and suspected components or unknowns that are being examined. The more efficient the separation method and the more discriminating the detector, the higher the degree of confidence one has that accurate results are reported.

    A variety of testing methods best defines the chemical constituents of a complex solution like Kombucha. Mass spectrometry provides ion characteristics of chemicals, while size exclusion provides information about the elements' weight and size.

The utilization of different chromatography columns (stationary phase) and different organic solvents, modifiers, and buffers (mobile phase), and different detection methods (mass spectrometry, photodiode array-UV absorbency) provides a wealth of information about the chemical structure of the Kombucha ferment. For instance, the reverse phase column (C-18), using H20/acetonitrile for the mobile phase, provides the best separation and detection of the B vitamins in Kombucha. Cationic exchange gives the best separation and detection of the various sugar acids. A methylene chloride extraction and concentration to 100:1 gives a good separation and detection by gas chromatography of many of the acid esters, intermediates and other metabolites of the fermentation process.

          In chemistry, varying levels of confidence allow a chemist to state how sure he is that what he's reporting is what is actually present. While it is simple to obtain high levels of confidence on the identities of some substances, others can prove exceedingly difficult to accurately identify and may require extensive and repetitive analysis using a variety of techniques. Due to their minuscule concentration and structural similarity, many molecules can appear almost identical, even when calibrated against known standards using powerful chromatographic and spectrophotometric equipment. Thus testing a "simple" compound may require testing its structure several times to determine with a degree of confidence that it is (or isn't) a particular substance. When you put a variety of often times similar molecules into a primordial stew and then ask to determine what's in it, you've asked what's in Kombucha. Since we wanted to achieve a high degree of accuracy and confidence, our work was cut out for us.

     While Kombucha has been consumed for thousands of years, its use is currently relegated to the realm of folklore and alternative medicine. Kombucha is not widely appreciated in the scientific community because that frame of mind wants facts instead of anecdotal information. The lack of substantiated information about its composition and function has caused many in the allopathic medical community to warn against its use.

     Nevertheless, Kombucha drinkers who are interested can obtain volumes of information on Kombucha. Several books have been published on the topic, but they rely heavily on anecdotal testimony. The largest body of research on the topic to date was conducted in the post-WWII Soviet Union. The protocols of most Cold War Soviet research are not held in the highest regard by many Western countries, and research since that time has been sporadic. Additionally, many of those studies were conducted on a single aspect of the tea fungus rather than the whole organism and its constituents.

     In April 1995, I asked a commercial food chemist to analyze Kombucha for the presence of certain ingredients. I found the competing claims about the composition of Kombucha to be confusing. There is a long list of items purported to be present in Kombucha. The initial results were very promising, yet not necessarily in complete agreement with what the anecdotal evidence argued. It was the first step in the first 16 months of this study which has resulted in this web site.

      The microbiology study began several months later and it has resulted in isolation and identification of several yeast, bacteria, and mold species. Like the chemistry portion of our study, the isolation and identification of microorganisms in the Kombucha ferment is an involved and time consuming process. We are pleased to be able to confirm several previously noted yeast and bacteria, and to introduce others that we have also isolated and identified.

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