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Emerging Natural Antimicrobials for Food Protection and Shelf Life Extension

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A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Packaging and Preservation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 October 2023) | Viewed by 7698

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Xiaodong Xia

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Guest Editor

School of Food Science and Technology, National Engineering Research Center of Seafood, Dalian Polytechnic University, Dalian 116304, China
Interests: foodborne pathogens; biofilm; stress resistance; pathogenicity; natural antimicrobials; food preservation; microbiota; functional foods
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Xiaonan Lu

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Guest Editor

Department of Food Science and Agricultural Chemistry, McGill University, Ste Anne de Bellevue, QC H9X 3V9, Canada
Interests: food safety; food microbiology; molecular microbiology; microbial ecology; rapid detection; biosensor; instrumentation; analytical chemistry; food sustainability; food synthetic biology; cellular agriculture; food microbiota; gut microbiota; food authentication
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Hongshun Yang

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Guest Editor

Department of Food Science and Technology, National University of Singapore, Science Drive 2, Singapore 117542, Singapore
Interests: food processing; food safety; food safety engineering; food metabolomics; food quality; food spoilage
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Chao Shi

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Guest Editor

College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
Interests: foodborne pathogens; natural antimicrobials; photodynamic inactivation; biofilm; viable but nonculturable; cross-protection; food preservation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Microbes contribute to the manufacturing of fermented foods, but they are also the most common cause of foodborne diseases and food spoilage. Currently, thermal processing and chemical preservatives are still common strategies in the food industry to inactivate or inhibit undesirable microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Although effective in controlling microbes in foods, these technologies have certain disadvantages, such as high energy cost, negative effects on organoleptic properties, and potential safety concerns. To meet consumers’ increasing demand for more natural and safer food, researchers have been exploring natural antimicrobials from various sources to protect the safety or quality of food. Although numerous natural substances have been proven to exhibit antimicrobial activity against certain food microbes in vitro, the specific antimicrobial mechanisms and their efficacy in real scenario are still not well-understood.

In this Special Issue of Foods, we are encouraging the submission of manuscripts examining emerging antimicrobial substances from various sources including plant, animal, or microorganisms. Researchers are expected to not only demonstrate the antimicrobial activity of those natural substances against various types of microbes in foods, but also delve into detailed antimicrobial mechanisms and test their efficacy in food systems. Studies are also encouraged to explore the combination of natural antimicrobials with existing food preservation technologies or to develop antimicrobial food packaging material by incorporation of those natural substances. This Special Issue welcomes all original research and review articles covering, but not limited to, the aformentioned research areas.

Prof. Dr. Xiaodong Xia
Dr. Xiaonan Lu
Dr. Hongshun Yang
Dr. Chao Shi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

natural antimicrobials
foodborne pathogens
spoilage
preservative
packaging
hurdle technology

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 1977 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Essential Oils of Mentha arvensis and Cinnamomum cassia Exhibit Distinct Antibacterial Activity at Different Temperatures In Vitro and on Chicken Skin

by Iglė Vepštaitė-Monstavičė, Bazilė Ravoitytė, Jurga Būdienė, Algirdas Valys, Juliana Lukša and Elena Servienė

Foods 2023, 12(21), 3938; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12213938 - 27 Oct 2023

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Abstract

The bacterial contamination of meat is a global concern, especially for the risk of Salmonella infection that can lead to health issues. Artificial antibacterial compounds used to preserve fresh meat can have negative health effects. We investigated the potential of natural essential oils (EOs), namely Mentha arvensis (mint) and Cinnamomum cassia (cinnamon) EOs, to prevent contamination of the food pathogen, Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serotype Typhimurium, in vitro and on chicken skin. The gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) technique was used to determine the compositions of mint EO (MEO) and cinnamon EO (CEO); the most abundant compound in MEO was menthol (68.61%), and the most abundant compound was cinnamaldehyde (83.32%) in CEO. The antibacterial activity of MEO and CEO were examined in vapor and direct contact with S. typhimurium at temperatures of 4 °C, 25 °C, and 37 °C. The minimal inhibitory concentration at 37 °C for MEO and CEO reached 20.83 µL/mL, and the minimal bactericidal concentration of CEO was the same, while for MEO, it was two-fold higher. We report that in most tested conditions in experiments performed in vitro and on chicken skin, CEO exhibits a stronger antibacterial effect than MEO. In the vapor phase, MEO was more effective against S. typhimurium than CEO at 4 °C. In direct contact, the growth of S. typhimurium was inhibited more efficiently by MEO than CEO at small concentrations and a longer exposure time at 37 °C. The exploration of CEO and MEO employment for the inhibition of Salmonella bacteria at different temperatures and conditions expands the possibilities of developing more environment- and consumer-friendly antibacterial protection for raw meat. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Natural Antimicrobials for Food Protection and Shelf Life Extension)

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16 pages, 4363 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Anti-Biofilm Activity of Laurel Essential Oil against Vibrio parahaemolyticus

by Wenxiu Zhu, Jiaxiu Liu, Yue Zou, Shugang Li, Dongyun Zhao, Haisong Wang and Xiaodong Xia

Foods 2023, 12(19), 3658; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12193658 - 3 Oct 2023

Viewed by 1129

Abstract

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a primary seafood-associated pathogen that could cause gastroenteritis. It can attach to various surfaces and form a biofilm, which poses serious threats to food safety. Hence, an effective strategy is urgently needed to control the biofilm formation of V. parahaemolyticus. Laurel essential oil (LEO) is used in food, pharmaceutical and other industries, and is commonly used as a flavoring agent and valuable spice in food industries. The potential antibiofilm effects of LEO against V. parahaemolyticus were examined in this study. LEO obviously reduced biofilm biomass at subinhibitory concentrations (SICs). It decreased the metabolic activity and viability of biofilm cells. Microscopic images and Raman spectrum indicted that LEO interfered with the structure and biochemical compositions of biofilms. Moreover, it also impaired swimming motility, decreased hydrophobicity, inhibited auto-aggregation and reduced attachment to different food-contact surfaces. RT-qPCR revealed that LEO significantly downregulated transcription levels of biofilm-associated genes of V. parahaemolyticus. These findings demonstrate that LEO could be potentially developed as an antibiofilm strategy to control V. parahaemolyticus biofilms in food industries. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Natural Antimicrobials for Food Protection and Shelf Life Extension)

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15 pages, 5135 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

A Broad-Spectrum Phage Endolysin (LysCP28) Able to Remove Biofilms and Inactivate Clostridium perfringens Strains

by Rui Lu, Banhong Liu, Liting Wu, Hongduo Bao, Pilar García, Yongjuan Wang, Yan Zhou and Hui Zhang

Foods 2023, 12(2), 411; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12020411 - 15 Jan 2023

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2217

Abstract

Clostridium perfringens is a gram-positive, anaerobic, spore-forming bacterium capable of producing four major toxins which cause disease symptoms and pathogenesis in humans and animals. C. perfringens strains carrying enterotoxins can cause food poisoning in humans and are associated with meat consumption. An endolysin, named LysCP28, is encoded by orf28 from C. perfringens bacteriophage BG3P. This protein has an N-terminal glycosyl–hydrolase domain (lysozyme) and a C-terminal SH3 domain. Purified LysCP28 (38.8 kDa) exhibited a broad spectrum of lytic activity against C. perfringens strains (77 of 96 or 80.21%), including A, B, C, and D types, isolated from different sources. Moreover, LysCP28 (10 μg/mL) showed high antimicrobial activity and was able to lyse 2 × 10⁷ CFU/mL C. perfringens ATCC 13124 and C. perfringens J21 (animal origin) within 2 h. Necessary due to this pathogenic bacterium’s ability to form biofilms, LysCP28 (18.7 μg/mL) was successfully evaluated as an antibiofilm agent in both biofilm removal and formation inhibition. Finally, to confirm the efficacy of LysCP28 in a food matrix, duck meat was contaminated with C. perfringens and treated with endolysin (100 µg/mL and 50 µg/mL), which reduced viable bacteria by 3.2 and 3.08 units-log, respectively, in 48 h at 4 °C. Overall, the endolysin LysCP28 could potentially be used as a biopreservative to reduce C. perfringens contamination during food processing. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Natural Antimicrobials for Food Protection and Shelf Life Extension)

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Review

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19 pages, 1145 KiB

Open AccessReview

Harnessing Natural Antioxidants for Enhancing Food Shelf Life: Exploring Sources and Applications in the Food Industry

by Carmen Daniela Petcu, Dana Tăpăloagă, Oana Diana Mihai, Raluca-Aniela Gheorghe-Irimia, Carmen Negoiță, Ioana Mădălina Georgescu, Paul Rodian Tăpăloagă, Cristin Borda and Oana Mărgărita Ghimpețeanu

Foods 2023, 12(17), 3176; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12173176 - 23 Aug 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2133

Abstract

Consumers are increasingly showing in maintaining a healthy dietary regimen, while food manufacturers are striving to develop products that possess an extended shelf-life to meet the demands of the market. Numerous studies have been conducted to identify natural sources that contribute to the preservation of perishable food derived from animals and plants, thereby prolonging its shelf life. Hence, the present study focuses on the identification of both natural sources of antioxidants and their applications in the development of novel food products, as well as their potential for enhancing product shelf-life. The origins of antioxidants in nature encompass a diverse range of products, including propolis, beebread, and extracts derived through various physical–chemical processes. Currently, there is a growing body of research being conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of natural antioxidants in the processing and preservation of various food products, including meat and meat products, milk and dairy products, bakery products, and bee products. The prioritization of discovering novel sources of natural antioxidants is a crucial concern for the meat, milk, and other food industries. Additionally, the development of effective methods for applying these natural antioxidants is a significant objective in the food industry. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Natural Antimicrobials for Food Protection and Shelf Life Extension)

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