Dear Colleagues,

The microbiological quality of foods is an essential factor for consumers and food industries, since food-borne diseases still represent a widespread health and economic problem. In recent years, the prevention of microbial growth in foods has focused on the use of natural substances (compounds produced by microorganisms, plant extracts, enzymes, etc.) to maintain food safety. These substances have proven to be effective against both the planktonic and sessile cells (biofilm) of food-borne pathogens and spoilage microorganisms present in row materials and on surfaces used during the production process. On the other hand, the number of emerging pathogenic microorganisms (psychrotrophic and antibiotic-resistant bacteria) has increased over time, as has the population at-risk of microbial diseases (older and immunocompromised patients). For this reason, the development of new methodologies for improving microbiological control are needed to facilitate the use of new, fast, and easy-to-use methods for microbial detection. This Special Issue welcomes original research articles and reviews, covering, but not limited to, the use of natural substances and new techniques for controlling and improving the microbiological quality of foods.

Dr. Ramona Iseppi
Dr. Patrizia Messi
Dr. Carla Sabia
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. Applied Sciences 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 2400 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.

• pathogens
• natural substances
• shelf life
• antimicrobial
• biofilm
• spoilage bacteria
• food safety
• new detection methods