Category Archives: Proteus

Research – Dynamic Changes of Bacterial Communities and Microbial Association Networks in Ready-to-Eat Chicken Meat during Storage

Posted on November 27, 2022 | Leave a comment

MDPI

Abstract

Ready-to-eat (RTE) chicken is a popular food in China, but its lack of food safety due to bacterial contamination remains a concern, and the dynamic changes of microbial association networks during storage are not fully understood. This study investigated the impact of storage time and temperature on bacterial compositions and microbial association networks in RTE chicken using 16S rDNA high-throughput sequencing. The results show that the predominant phyla present in all samples were Proteobacteria and Firmicutes, and the most abundant genera were Weissella, Pseudomonas and Proteus. Increased storage time and temperature decreased the richness and diversity of the microorganisms of the bacterial communities. Higher storage temperatures impacted the bacterial community composition more significantly. Microbial interaction analyses showed 22 positive and 6 negative interactions at 4 °C, 30 positive and 12 negative interactions at 8 °C and 44 positive and 45 negative interactions at 22 °C, indicating an increase in the complexity of interaction networks with an increase in the storage temperature. Enterobacter dominated the interactions during storage at 4 and 22 °C, and Pseudomonas did so at 22 °C. Moreover, interactions between pathogenic and/or spoilage bacteria, such as those between Pseudomonas fragi and Weissella viridescens, Enterobacter unclassified and Proteus unclassified, or those between Enterobacteriaceae unclassified and W.viridescens, were observed. This study provides insight into the process involved in RTE meat spoilage and can aid in improving the quality and safety of RTE meat products to reduce outbreaks of foodborne illness. View Full-Text

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Posted in bacterial contamination, cross contamination, Decontamination Microbial, food contamination, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, microbial contamination, Microbial growth, Microbiological Risk Assessment, Microbiology, Microbiology Investigations, Microbiology Risk, Proteus, Pseudomonas, Research

Research – Survival and Histamine Production by Histamine-Forming Bacteria Exposed to Low Doses of Gamma Irradiation

Posted on July 5, 2020 | Leave a comment

JFP

ABSTRACT

Histamine poisoning occurs when fish containing high amount of histamine are consumed. Because histamine is thermally stable, control of histamine-forming bacteria in seafood is an appropriate strategy for preventing the formation of histamine. One prevention method is the use of gamma irradiation on the histamine formers. To understand the effect of gamma irradiation on the histamine-forming bacteria, laboratory isolates of the prolific histamine formers Morganella morganii, Klebsiella variicola, and Proteus vulgaris were exposed to various doses of gamma radiation in nutrient broth and tuna muscle spiked with histamine formers. None of the test bacteria survived in tuna muscle irradiated at 2.0 kGy. K. variicola was highly sensitive to gamma irradiation and was eliminated at a dose of 1.5 kGy. Histamine production also was reduced significantly as the radiation dose increased. These results suggest that gamma irradiation can effectively eliminate histamine-forming bacteria and reduce the threat of histamine poisoning from seafood.

HIGHLIGHTS
  • Histamine-forming bacteria are highly susceptible to low levels of gamma irradiation.
  • Prolific histamine formers in tuna meat were eliminated by irradiation at 2.0 kGy.
  • Irradiation at 1.5 kGy reduced the level of histamine formers in tuna meat by 4 to 5 log CFU.
  • Histamine formation in tuna meat can be controlled by low levels of gamma irradiation.

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Posted in food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Poisoning, Food Safety, Food Temperature Abuse, Food Testing, Food Toxin, Histamine, Klebsiella, Proteus, Research, Uncategorized

Research – Effect of Sodium Hypochlorite on Biofilm-Forming Ability of Histamine-Producing Bacteria Isolated from Fish

Posted on August 14, 2019 | Leave a comment

Journal of Food Protection

ABSTRACT

Histamine poisoning occurs when temperature-abused marine fish containing elevated levels of histamine are consumed. Histamine-producing bacteria found in fish can colonize processing surfaces and form biofilms. In this study, the biofilm-forming abilities of histamine-producing bacteria from Indian mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta) and the effect of hypochlorite treatment on biofilm formation were studied. The isolates of this study produced histamine in the range of 471 to 2,126 ppm. The histidine decarboxylase gene hdc was detected in all isolates producing histamine except in one strain each of Psychrobacter pulmonis and Proteus vulgaris. All isolates tested in this study produced moderate biofilms under control conditions, whereas exposure to 1 and 3 ppm of sodium hypochlorite significantly enhanced biofilm formation. However, exposure to 5 ppm of sodium hypochlorite showed an inhibitory effect on biofilm formation by all the isolates except Klebsiella variicola. The results of this study suggest that histamine-producing bacteria can form stable biofilms and that this activity may be enhanced by the application of low levels of sodium hypochlorite, a phenomenon that might influence the persistence of histamine-producing bacteria in fish processing areas.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Bacteria isolated from Indian mackerel produced histamine in the range of 471 to 2,126 ppm.

  • Histamine-producing bacteria isolated from the same fish can vary in the levels of histamine produced.

  • The hdc gene was not detected in one strain each of Psychrobacter pulmonis and Proteus vulgaris.

  • All histamine-producing bacteria formed moderate biofilms under control conditions.

  • Exposure to 1 and 3 ppm of sodium hypochlorite increased biofilm formation by histamine-producing bacteria.

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Posted in Biofilm, Enterobacteriaceae, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Spoilage, Histamine, Klebsiella, microbial contamination, Microbiology, Proteus, Uncategorized

Research – Kitchen Towel As Risk Factor for Home Based Food Poisoning

Posted on July 15, 2018 | Leave a comment

Abstracts Online

Background: Cross contamination in the kitchen could contribute to home-based food poisoning. This study aimed at investigating the potential role of kitchen towels in cross contamination in the kitchen. Methods: A total of 100 kitchen towels were collected after one month of use. The bacteria were cultured and identified by standard biochemical tests. A questionnaire was also designed to investigate the potential risk factors which could affect the result. Results:  Bacterial growth was found in 49% of the kitchen towels and significantly increased by size of family, extended family and presence on children. Multipurpose towels had higher CFU than single use towels (1.31 x 107 vs 6.60 x 104; p<0.05) and humid towels had higher CFU than dry ones (4.8 x 105 vs 0.5x 105; p<0.05). The mean CFU from the towels was found to be 2.76 x 105 and was significantly higher from the cotton towels (4.98 x 105) compared to the nylon (1.64 x 105) and mixture of both towels (1.89 x 105). Out of the 49 samples which were positive for bacterial growth, 36.7% grew coliforms, 36.7% Enterococcus spp., 30.6% Pseudomonas spp., 28.6% grew Bacillus spp., 14.3% S. aureus, 4.1% Proteus spp., 2.0% coagulase negative Staphylococcus. Furthermore, S. aureus was isolated at higher rate from families of lower socio-economic status (p<0.05) and those with children (p<0.05). The risk of having coliforms was twice on humid towels than the dried ones. It was also noted that as the CFU increased, the detection rate of coliform, Enterococcus spp., Proteus spp. and Bacillus spp. also increased significantly. Furthermore, Enterococcus spp. and S. aureus were isolated at higher prevalence in bigger families (p<0.05). Diet was also found to be an important factor. Coliform and S. aureus were detected at significantly higher prevalence from families on non-vegetarian diets while a higher prevalence of Enterococcus species from the kitchen towels of vegetarian families. Conclusions: This study conclude that kitchen towels could be very important source bacterial contamination which could contribute to food poisoning. The multipurpose usage of kitchen towels should be discouraged.

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Posted in Bacillus, Bacillus cereus, Bacteria, Coliforms, Enterococcus, Proteus, Pseudomonas, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Research, Staphylococcus aureus, Uncategorized