High pressure sensitization of heat-resistant and pathogenic foodborne spores to nisin.

Today, there is no effective non-thermal method to inactivate unwanted bacterial spores in foods. High-Pressure (HP) process has been shown to act synergistically with moderate heating and the bacteriocin nisin to inactivate spores but the mechanisms have not been elucidated. The purpose of the present work was to investigate in depth the synergy of HP and nisin on various foodborne spore species and to bring new elements of understandings. For this purpose, spores of Bacillus pumilus, B. sporothermodurans, B. licheniformis, B. weihenstephanensis, and Clostridium sp. were suspended in MES buffer, in skim milk or in a liquid medium simulating cooked ham brine and treated by HP at 500 MPa for 10 min at 50 °C or 20 °C. Nisin (20 or 50 IU/mL) was added at three different points during treatment: during HP, during and or in the plating medium of enumeration. In the latter two cases, a high synergy was observed with the inhibition of the spores of Bacillus spp. The evaluation of the germinated fraction of Bacillus spp. spores after HP revealed that this synergy was likely due to the action of nisin on HP-sensitized spores, rather than on HP-germinated spores. Thus, the combination of nisin and HP can lead to Bacillus spp. spore inhibition at 20 °C. And Nisin can act on HP-treated spores, even if they are not germinated. This paper provides new information about the inhibition of spores by the combination of HP and nisin. The high synergy observed at low temperature has not been reported yet and could allow food preservation without the use of any thermal process.

Prevalence of thermoduric bacteria and spores in nonfat dry milk powders of Midwest origin.

Samples of nonfat dry milk powder were analyzed for the presence of heat-resistant bacteria. The samples were collected from Midwest manufacturing companies and were evaluated for the presence of spores, thermoduric bacteria, and the total bacterial count. Three companies were included in this study, and results showed differences between each of the companies in the heat-resistant microbial groups tested. Company 3 had the highest levels of total spores and thermoduric bacteria: 3.6±0.14 and 3.5±0.13 log cfu/g, respectively. Interestingly, this company did not have the highest total bacterial count but rather the second lowest total bacterial count for the group, perhaps because of the higher proportion of thermophiles present in the powders from this company. The average level of total bacterial counts was 2.57±0.07 log cfu/g. Isolates obtained from the samples were identified by mass spectrometry, and all of the companies showed Bacillus licheniformis as the most prevalent bacterial species identified.

Inactivation of Bacillus sporothermodurans spores by nisin and temperature studied by design of experiments in water and milk.

Spores of Bacillus sporothermodurans are known to be a contaminant of dairy products and to be extremely heat-resistant. A central composite experimental design with three factors using response surface methodology was used to evaluate the effect of nisin (50-150 UI/mL), temperature (80-100 °C), and temperature-holding time (10-20 min) on the inactivation of B. sporothermodurans LTIS27 spores in distilled water, in skim milk and in chocolate milk. The experimental values were shown to be significantly in good agreement with the values predicted by the quadratic equation since the adjusted determination coefficients (Radj(2)) were around 0.97. By analyzing the response surfaces plots, the inactivation was shown to be higher in distilled water than in skim milk under all the conditions tested. Five-log cycle reductions of B. sporothermodurans spores were obtained after a treatment at 95 °C for 12 min in presence of 125 UI of nisin/mL in distilled water or at 100 °C for 13 min in presence of 134 UI of nisin/mL in skim milk or at 100 °C for 15 min in presence of 135 UI of nisin/mL in chocolate milk. This study showed the efficiency of nisin (15-184 UI/mL) in combination with temperature (73-106 °C) to inactivate spores of B. sporothermodurans in milk.