Avaliação microbiológica de carne de charque produzida industrialmente / Microbiological evaluation of industrially produced charqui meat

O charque é um produto cárneo salgado e seco ao Sol obtido por desidratação da carne bovina, preservando-se, assim, por longo tempo. Apesar de passar por etapas que dificultam o crescimento de micro-organismos, pode ser contaminado durante o seu processamento. Dessa forma, objetivou-se avaliar microbiologicamente 25 amostras de charque de um frigorífico com serviço de inspeção estadual localizado no Rio Grande do Norte, Brasil. As amostras foram avaliadas quanto à contagem de estafilococos coagulase positiva, NMP de coliformes termotolerantes, Salmonella spp. e contagem de bactérias halofílicas. Avaliando a qualidade microbiológica da carne de charque, verificaram-se que cinco amostras (20%) encontravam-se em desacordo com a legislação vigente (ANVISA) para análises de estafilococos coagulase positiva, apresentando uma variação de 1,38 a 3,93 UFC/g; todas as amostras estavam em conformidade para coliformes termotolerantes. Quanto à determinação da Salmonella spp., verificou-se sua presença em sete amostras (28%), e para bactérias halofílicas, uma média de 2,25 UFC/g. Assim, as carnes de charque apresentaram micro-organismos que comprometem a qualidade do produto e podem proporcionar risco ao consumidor.(AU)

Charqui is a salted and sun dried meat product, obtained by the dehydration of beef, thus being preserved for a long time. Despite going through steps which hamper microorganisms' growth, it can be contaminated during the processing stages. Therefore, this study was aimed at microbiologically evaluating 25 samples of charqui meat taken from a slaughterhouse in Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. Samples were analyzed as to the counts of coagulase-positive staphylococci, the MPN of thermotolerant coliforms, the presence of Salmonella spp., and the counts of halophilic bacteria. By evaluating the microbiological quality of charqui meat, we observed that five samples (20%) were off legal standards (ANVISA) as to coagulase positive staphylococci, with counts ranging from 1.38 to 3.93 CFU/g, and all samples were within patterns for the thermotolerant coliform count. The presence of Salmonella spp. was observed in seven samples (28%), and the average count of halophilic bacteria was of 2.25 CFU/g. Thus, charqui meat presents microorganisms which compromise the quality of products and put the consumer's health at risk.(AU)

Avaliação microbiológica de carne de charque produzida industrialmente / Microbiological evaluation of industrially produced charqui meat

O charque é um produto cárneo salgado e seco ao Sol obtido por desidratação da carne bovina, preservando-se, assim, por longo tempo. Apesar de passar por etapas que dificultam o crescimento de micro-organismos, pode ser contaminado durante o seu processamento. Dessa forma, objetivou-se avaliar microbiologicamente 25 amostras de charque de um frigorífico com serviço de inspeção estadual localizado no Rio Grande do Norte, Brasil. As amostras foram avaliadas quanto à contagem de estafilococos coagulase positiva, NMP de coliformes termotolerantes, Salmonella spp. e contagem de bactérias halofílicas. Avaliando a qualidade microbiológica da carne de charque, verificaram-se que cinco amostras (20%) encontravam-se em desacordo com a legislação vigente (ANVISA) para análises de estafilococos coagulase positiva, apresentando uma variação de 1,38 a 3,93 UFC/g; todas as amostras estavam em conformidade para coliformes termotolerantes. Quanto à determinação da Salmonella spp., verificou-se sua presença em sete amostras (28%), e para bactérias halofílicas, uma média de 2,25 UFC/g. Assim, as carnes de charque apresentaram micro-organismos que comprometem a qualidade do produto e podem proporcionar risco ao consumidor.(AU)

Charqui is a salted and sun dried meat product, obtained by the dehydration of beef, thus being preserved for a long time. Despite going through steps which hamper microorganisms' growth, it can be contaminated during the processing stages. Therefore, this study was aimed at microbiologically evaluating 25 samples of charqui meat taken from a slaughterhouse in Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. Samples were analyzed as to the counts of coagulase-positive staphylococci, the MPN of thermotolerant coliforms, the presence of Salmonella spp., and the counts of halophilic bacteria. By evaluating the microbiological quality of charqui meat, we observed that five samples (20%) were off legal standards (ANVISA) as to coagulase positive staphylococci, with counts ranging from 1.38 to 3.93 CFU/g, and all samples were within patterns for the thermotolerant coliform count. The presence of Salmonella spp. was observed in seven samples (28%), and the average count of halophilic bacteria was of 2.25 CFU/g. Thus, charqui meat presents microorganisms which compromise the quality of products and put the consumer's health at risk.(AU)

Detection of bovine milk contaminants in adulterated milk and curd goat cheese / Detecção de fraude em leite e queijo de coalho caprino por adição de leite bovino

Background: Goat milk is quite useful as an alternative for feeding children and adults who are sensitive or allergic to bovine milk because of its peculiar characteristics, and goat milk ensures the subsistence of small producers. Therefore, ensuring the purity and satisfactory quality of dairy goat products is essential for consumer safety. Accordingly, the present study aimed to detect adulteration of goat milk and curd goat cheese with bovine milk contaminants using polymerase chain reaction (PCR).Materials, Methods & Results: For this purpose, the detection limit of the PCR assay was tested using bovine milk added to goat milk at concentrations of 0.5%, 1.0%, 5.0%, 10.0%, 25.0%, 50.0%, and 100%. Subsequently, goat milk from 79 producers and 43 samples collected from community cooling tanks was tested. Curd goat cheese was subsequently manufactured in the laboratory according to technical recommendations. The quality of the curd cheese was assessed by adding the aforementioned concentrations of bovine milk to goat milk, and PCR was performed to detect contaminants. Genomic DNA was extracted from milk and curd cheese samples and subjected to amplification by PCR using specific primers. After amplification, PCR products were analyzed in 1.5% agarose gel, stained with ethidium bromide, and visualized using a UV transilluminator. The quality of milk DNA was evaluated using...(AU)

Detection of bovine milk contaminants in adulterated milk and curd goat cheese / Detecção de fraude em leite e queijo de coalho caprino por adição de leite bovino

Background: Goat milk is quite useful as an alternative for feeding children and adults who are sensitive or allergic to bovine milk because of its peculiar characteristics, and goat milk ensures the subsistence of small producers. Therefore, ensuring the purity and satisfactory quality of dairy goat products is essential for consumer safety. Accordingly, the present study aimed to detect adulteration of goat milk and curd goat cheese with bovine milk contaminants using polymerase chain reaction (PCR).Materials, Methods & Results: For this purpose, the detection limit of the PCR assay was tested using bovine milk added to goat milk at concentrations of 0.5%, 1.0%, 5.0%, 10.0%, 25.0%, 50.0%, and 100%. Subsequently, goat milk from 79 producers and 43 samples collected from community cooling tanks was tested. Curd goat cheese was subsequently manufactured in the laboratory according to technical recommendations. The quality of the curd cheese was assessed by adding the aforementioned concentrations of bovine milk to goat milk, and PCR was performed to detect contaminants. Genomic DNA was extracted from milk and curd cheese samples and subjected to amplification by PCR using specific primers. After amplification, PCR products were analyzed in 1.5% agarose gel, stained with ethidium bromide, and visualized using a UV transilluminator. The quality of milk DNA was evaluated using...

Atividade antimicrobiana do extrato alcoólico do fruto da Caesalpinia ferrea Mart frente a bactérias causadoras de mastite bovina / Antimicrobial Activity of the Alcoholic Extract Taken from the Caesalpinia ferrea Mart Fruit against Bacteria Related to Bovine Mastitis

Background: The usual treatment of bovine mastitis is made with antimicrobial agents, which may cause bacterial resistance if used incorrectly. Herbal medicines have been used in an attempt to avoid this issue, but not all of them are scientifi cally proven to be effective against the agents that cause this disease. The Caesalpinia ferrea Mart. is a plant widely distributed in North and Northeast regions and has been studied for its several pharmacological properties, and it could be used as herbal medicine. Therefore, this study aimed at evaluating the antimicrobial activity of the alcoholic extract derived from the fruit of Caesalpinia ferrea Mart. against bacteria that cause bovine mastitis. Materials, Methods & Results: The study was divided in two sequential experiments. Experiment I was designed to evaluate the potential antimicrobial activity of the aqueous (extract 1) and the lyophilized (extract 2) solutions of the ethanolic residue fractionated with chloroform, as well as of the aqueous solution of the lyophilized ethanolic residue (extract 3) against twelve selected bacterial types (four standard isolates and eight ones from the field), as a trial for the next experiment. Using the same bacterial samples from the previous example, Experiment II evaluated the antimicrobial activity of the extract that had the best results in eight dilutions in Experiment I. This study was developed using the multi-well technique in triplicate. The extracts 1, 2 and 3 of the C. ferrea fruit presented antimicrobial activity against all bacteria analyzed; no statistical difference was observed between the means of the inhibition halos, with exception of the field isolate Staphylococcus aureus 3, in which the best results were obtained with extracts 1 and 2. Experiment II used extract 1 due to its ease of handling, and the results of the microbial inhibition halos decreased as the extract dilution increased. Additionally, field bacteria had a lower response in relation to standard bacteria kept in the laboratory. Upon analysis of the sensitivity of the bacteria to treatments through descriptive analysis, regardless of the bacterial isolate, we observed that all bacteria were sensitive to the initial and 1/1 dilutions. Sensitivity decreased after the 1/2 dilution (83.33%), reaching the minimum threshold at the 1/8 dilution (41.66%). Bacterial resistance was observed after the 1/16 dilution for 25% of the isolates, reaching 58.33% of the isolates in the 1/64 dilution. Discussion: This study was the first to use ethanolic extract (liquid and lyophilized) from the C. ferrea fruit in vitro against bacteria causing bovine mastitis, also demonstrating that the lyophilization process did not modify the antimicrobial activity of this extract, representing an alternative to storage, as well as a possibility to improve concentration control in studies and to prepare different formulations for in vivo studies. The fact that field bacteria had higher resistance to the extracts in comparison to standard isolates may be related to handling issues, since C. ferrea bark shavings are used in animal nutrition to treat clinical bovine mastitis. Consequently, Caesalpinia ferrea showed antimicrobial activity against all bacteria evaluated, and may be considered as a therapeutic option for the control of bovine mastitis on in vivo biological assays.

Avaliação da carne suína in natura comercializada em Mossoró-RN / Evaluation of pork in natura commercialized at Mossoró-RN

Considerando a importância nutricional e social da comercialização da carne suína, objetivou-se avaliar a qualidade da carne suína in natura em Mossoró-RN. Para isso,obteve-se 20 amostras de carne suína de vários estabelecimentos comerciais,verificando-se o número de bactérias mesófilas, coliformes totais e termotolerantes, Salmonella spp., temperatura, umidade e pH. Observaram-se elevadas contagens de micro-organismos mesófilos, coliformes totais e termotolerantes e contaminação por Salmonella spp. foi detectada em 25% das carnes analisadas. Além disso, constatou-se que a temperatura de armazenamento da carne suína apresentou média de 18,6°C e para as análises de pH e umidade verificaram-se média de 5,8 e 45,3% respectivamente. Dessa forma,observou-se que a carne suína comercializada em Mossoró-RN pode representar risco ao consumidor por possuir qualidade microbiológica insatisfatória. A temperatura de armazenamento apresentou-se inadequada para conservação do produto.

Considering the nutrition and social importance of pork, we aimed to evaluate the quality of pork in natura inMossoró-RN. For such, 20 samples of pork were taken from several commercial establishments, and the number of mesophilic bacteria, total and thermotolerant coliforms, the presence of Salmonella spp., the temperature, the humidity and the pH were mesured. High counts of mesophilic bacteria, total and thermotolerant coliforms were detected, and contamination by Salmonella spp. was observed in 25% of the samples tested. Furthermore, the storage temperature of pork presented an average value of 18.6°C, as for the pH and moisture analysis content observed had average of 5.8 and 45.3%, respectively. Thus, it was noticed that the pork sold in Mossoró-RN may pose a risk to consumer’s health for having unsatisfactory microbiological quality. The storage temperature was found inadequate to preserve the product.

Avaliação da carne suína in natura comercializada em Mossoró-RN / Evaluation of pork in natura commercialized at Mossoró-RN

Considerando a importância nutricional e social da comercialização da carne suína, objetivou-se avaliar a qualidade da carne suína in natura em Mossoró-RN. Para isso,obteve-se 20 amostras de carne suína de vários estabelecimentos comerciais,verificando-se o número de bactérias mesófilas, coliformes totais e termotolerantes, Salmonella spp., temperatura, umidade e pH. Observaram-se elevadas contagens de micro-organismos mesófilos, coliformes totais e termotolerantes e contaminação por Salmonella spp. foi detectada em 25% das carnes analisadas. Além disso, constatou-se que a temperatura de armazenamento da carne suína apresentou média de 18,6°C e para as análises de pH e umidade verificaram-se média de 5,8 e 45,3% respectivamente. Dessa forma,observou-se que a carne suína comercializada em Mossoró-RN pode representar risco ao consumidor por possuir qualidade microbiológica insatisfatória. A temperatura de armazenamento apresentou-se inadequada para conservação do produto.(AU)

Considering the nutrition and social importance of pork, we aimed to evaluate the quality of pork in natura inMossoró-RN. For such, 20 samples of pork were taken from several commercial establishments, and the number of mesophilic bacteria, total and thermotolerant coliforms, the presence of Salmonella spp., the temperature, the humidity and the pH were mesured. High counts of mesophilic bacteria, total and thermotolerant coliforms were detected, and contamination by Salmonella spp. was observed in 25% of the samples tested. Furthermore, the storage temperature of pork presented an average value of 18.6°C, as for the pH and moisture analysis content observed had average of 5.8 and 45.3%, respectively. Thus, it was noticed that the pork sold in Mossoró-RN may pose a risk to consumers health for having unsatisfactory microbiological quality. The storage temperature was found inadequate to preserve the product.(AU)