Javier Raso

Influence of several environmental factors on the initiation of germination and inactivation of Bacillus cereus by high hydrostatic pressure.

The influence of pH, aw, L-alanine, and fat concentration of milk on the initiation of germination and inactivation by high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) (250 mPa at 25 degrees C for 15 min and 690 mPa at 40 degrees C for 2 min) of Bacillus cereus sporulated at 20, 30 and 37 degrees C was investigated. B. cereus sporulated at the lowest temperature was found to be the most resistant to the initiation of germination and inactivation by HHP. At ambient pressure, the rate and extension of germination induced by L-alanine were also lower in B. cereus sporulated at 20 than 30 or 37 degrees C. The optimum pH for the germination and inactivation of B. cereus depended on the sporulation temperature. At 250 mPa the extent of germination for the three suspensions increased with higher pH. At 690 mPa, the pH barely affected the germination of B. cereus sporulated at 20 degrees C (3 log cycles), but the inactivation increased as the pH of the medium was lowered. After the same treatment, pressure optimally initiated the germination of B. cereus sporulated at 30 and 37 degrees C (6-7 log cycles) around neutral pH. Higher inactivation was obtained at pH 6. High concentrations of sucrose protected the spores from the germinating and inactivating effect of HHP. At aw 0.92, no germination was detected when the spores were pressurized at 250 mPa, and only 1 log cycle of B. cereus sporulated at 20 and 30 degrees C and 2 log cycles of B. cereus sporulated at 37 degrees C were germinated at 690 mPa. In addition, no inactivation was observed at aW 0.92 even at 690 mPa. The presence of L-alanine in the medium of pressurization increased the germination initiated by HHP at 250 mPa, but not at 690 mPa. A combination of 250 mPa at 25 degrees C with L-alanine (100 mM) was found to give an additive response. The initiation of germination and inactivation by HHP were not affected by the fat concentration of the milk.

Predicting thermal inactivation in media of different pH of Salmonella grown at different temperatures

The influence of the growth temperature and the pH of the heating medium on the heat resistance at different temperatures of Salmonella typhimurium ATCC 13311 was studied and described mathematically. The shift of the growth temperature from 10 to 37 degrees C increased heat resistance of S. typhimurium fourfold. The pH of the heating medium at which heat resistance was maximum was pH 6 for cells grown at 37 degrees C, but changed with growth temperature. The alkalinization of the heating medium from pH 6 to pH 7.7 decreased the heat resistance of cells grown at 37 degrees C by a factor of 3. Neither the growth temperature nor the pH modified the z values significantly (4.9 degrees C). The decimal reduction times at different treatment temperatures, in buffers of different pH of cells of S. typhimurium grown at different temperatures, were accurately described by a mathematical equation (correlation coefficient of 0.97). This equation was also tested for Salmonella senftenberg 775W (ATCC 43845) and Salmonella enteritidis ATCC 13076, strains in which the correlation coefficients between the observed and the theoretically calculated values were 0.91 and 0.98, respectively.

Combined Effect of Temperature, pH, and Presence of Nisin on Inactivation of Staphylococcus aureus and Listeria monocytogenes by Pulsed Electric Fields

The combined effect of pH (3.5-7.0), temperature (4°C-50°C), and the presence of nisin (0-200 μg/mL) on the inactivation caused by pulsed electric fields (PEF) in two PEF-resistant Gram-positive microorganisms, Staphylococcus aureus and Listeria monocytogenes, was investigated. A response surface model using a central composite design was developed for the purpose of understanding the individual effects and interactions of these factors and to identify the most promising combinations for microbial inactivation. According to the developed models, temperature was the factor showing the greatest influence on PEF inactivation in the two strains investigated. A temperature increment from 4°C to 50°C increased the lethality of PEF by 2 and 3 log(10) cycles in S. aureus and L. monocytogenes, respectively. PEF inactivation in both microorganisms decreased with increased pH in the treatment medium from 3.5 to 7. The effect of the presence of nisin on the increment of PEF lethality for L. monocytogenes was additive or slightly synergistic. For S. aureus, this effect was synergistic at low temperatures and tended to disappear with increasing temperature. An inactivation of 4.5 and 5.5 log(10) cycles was achieved in the populations of S. aureus and L. monocytogenes, respectively, in a medium of pH 3.5 in the presence of 200 μg/mL of nisin at 50°C. Therefore, the application of PEF at moderate temperatures in the presence of antimicrobials such as nisin has great potential for achieving effective control of the vegetative forms of the two PEF-resistant Gram-positive strains investigated, especially in foods of low pH, such as fruit juices.

Pulsed Electric Field Processing: Cold Pasteurization

Pulsed electric field (PEF) is a commercially viable food processing technology designed to inactivate microorganisms in liquid food at lower temperatures than those used in thermal processing. The procedure consists in applying brief, high-voltage pulses that induce the permeabilization of the microbial cytoplasmic membrane and, consequently, the loss of its properties as a semipermeable barrier. As bacterial spores are resistant to PEF, applications of this technology are mainly focused on the pasteurization of heat-sensitive foods, such as fruit juices and smoothies.