Fresh and fresh-cut tomatoes have been associated with numerous outbreaks of salmonellosis in recent years. While the exact routes of contamination are unknown, high pressure processing (HPP) is being evaluated as a post harvest treatment to eliminate Salmonella enterica from tomatoes. The objectives of the study were to determine the potential for of HPP to reduce S. enterica serovars Newport, Javiana, Braenderup and Anatum (clinical isolates from tomato outbreaks) in tryptic soy broth (TSB) and to determine the effect of HPP to reduce the most pressure resistant S. enterica serovar from fresh diced and whole tomatoes. Five ml portions of broth containing 8 log CFU/ml of one of the four serovars (nalidixic acid resistant) were packaged in sterile stomacher bags and subjected to one of three different pressures (350, 450, or 550 MPa) for 120s. Samples were enumerated by surface plating onto tryptic soy agar supplemented with 50 ppm nalidixic acid (TSAN) and incubated at 35°C for 48 hours. The most pressure resistant S. enterica serovar evaluated was Braenderup. Subjecting the broth culture to 350, 450 and 550 MPa resulted in a 4.53, 5.74 and 7.09 log reduction in S. Braenderup, respectively. Diced tomatoes (150g) and whole red round tomatoes (150g; packaged in 350ml of 1% CaCl2) were inoculated with S. Braenderup, to obtain 6 log CFU/g throughout the sample and subjected to the same pressure treatments as described above. After HPP, diced tomatoes were homogenized for 1 minute and then plated on TSAN. Whole tomatoes were surface sampled, and then homogenized for 1 minute. Surface and homogenate samples were plated on TSAN supplemented with 1% pyruvic acid (TSANP). Significant reductions of S. Braenderup concentrations in diced tomatoes (P < 0.05) were seen after processing at 350 (0.46 CFU/g), 450 (1.44 log CFU/g), and 550 MPa (3.67 log CFU/g). In whole tomatoes, significant reductions (P < 0.05) were also seen at 350 (1.41 log CFU/g), 450 (2.25 log CFU/g) and 550 MPa (3.35 log CFU/g). There were no differences in visual appearance between fresh and HPP diced and whole tomatoes. HPP may be an effective post harvest strategy to reduce low levels of S. enterica contamination in diced tomatoes. / Master of Science in Life Sciences
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/33608 |
| Date | 03 July 2009 |
| Creators | Maitland, Jessica |
| Contributors | Food Science and Technology, Boyer, Renee R., Williams, Robert C., Eifert, Joseph D. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
| Relation | FinalThesisDraft.pdf |
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