Skip to main content
ARS Home » Northeast Area » Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania » Eastern Regional Research Center » Microbial and Chemical Food Safety » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #325412
Title: Evaluation of a novel antimicrobial solution and its potential for control E. coli O157:H7, non-O157:H7 shiga toxin-producing E. coli, Salmononella spp., and Listeria monocytogenes on beef

Author
item FISHER, KIMBERLY - Auburn University
item BRATCHER, CHRISTY - Auburn University
item Jin, Zhonglin
item BILGILI, SACIT - Auburn University
item OWSLEY, WALTER - Auburn University
item WANG, LUXIN - Auburn University

Submitted to: Food Control
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/11/2015
Publication Date: 2/5/2016
Citation: Fisher, K.D., Bratcher, C., Jin, Z.T., Bilgili, S.F., Owsley, W.F., Wang, L. 2016. Evaluation of a novel antimicrobial solution and its potential for control E. coli O157:H7, non-O157:H7 shiga toxin-producing E. coli, Salmononella spp., and Listeria monocytogenes on beef. Food Control. 64:196-201.

Interpretive Summary: Meat products may be contaminated with foodborne pathogens during processing, handling and storage. This study investigated the efficacy of an antimicrobial solution used as a marinade against foodborne pathogens, including Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, and non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli on raw beef during marination. The developed marinade with chitosan, lauric arginate ester, and organic acids achieved greater than 3 log (>99.9%) reductions of the pathogens in meat samples, indicating that the marinade has the potential to be used by consumers to ensure better food safety.

Technical Abstract: The goal of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a novel antimicrobial solution made with chitosan, lauric arginate ester, and organic acids on Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, and non-O157 shiga toxin-producing E. coli cocktails and to test its potential to be used as a marinade for raw beef. Fresh beef top round steaks were surface-inoculated with the pathogen cocktails at approximately 2.5 or 4.5 Log CFU per sq. cm, marinated with the antimicrobial solution (AMS), and then stored at four degree C for 6, 24, and 48 hrs. Three commercially available marinades were used for comparison. Results revealed that AMS had the most antimicrobial effect regardless of the type or inoculation level of pathogens (P < 0.05). After 6 hrs, the AMS marination reduced all pathogens to levels below the limit of detection (< 1 Log CFU per sq. cm), resulting in a 3.5 Log CFU per sq. cm reduction. When AMS was diluted with autoclaved distilled water by 5 times (AMS 1:5) or 10 times (AMS 1:10), its antimicrobial efficacy was impacted by marination time, the inoculated pathogens, and the inoculation levels. This study demonstrates that the developed antimicrobial solution.