Author:
Sun Yeting,Zhao Xiaoyan,Xu Xiulan,Ma Yue,Guan Hongyang,Liang Hao,Wang Dan
Abstract
AbstractSlicing may cause the risk of cross-contamination in cucumber. In this study, knife inoculated with Escherichia coli (E. coli) was used to cut cucumbers, bioluminescence imaging (BLI) was used to visualize the possible distribution and internalization of E. coli during cutting and storage. Results showed that the initial two slices resulted in greater bacterial transfer. The bacterial transfer exhibited a fluctuating decay trend, E. coli was most distributed at the initial cutting site. The contaminated area on the surface of cucumber slices decreased during the storage period, which can be attributed to the death and internalization of E. coli. The maximum internalization distance of E. coli was about 2–3 mm, and did not further spread after 30 min from inoculation. Hence, our results provide useful information for risk management in both home and industrial environment.
Funder
China Agriculture Research System
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Reference43 articles.
1. Pablos, C. et al. Novel antimicrobial agents as alternative to chlorine with potential applications in the fruit and vegetable processing industry. Int. J. Food Microbiol. 20, 92–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2018.07.029 (2018).
2. Sneed, J., Phebus, R., Duncan-Goldsmith, D., Milke, D. & Johnson, D. Consumer food handling practices lead to cross-contamination. J. Food Prot. 35, 36–48 (2015).
3. Zhang, S. Transfer and Survival of Salmonella Newport and Typhimurium on Fresh-Cut Tomato and Cucumber. Doctoral dissertation-Illinois Inst. Technol. 2017, 1–45. https://www.zhangqiaokeyan.com/academic-degree-foreign_mphd_thesis/0206195617.html (2017).
4. Sun, Y. et al. Elucidating Escherichia Coli O157:H7 colonization and internalization in cucumbers using an inverted fluorescence microscope and hyperspectral microscopy. Microorganisms 7, 499–512. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7110499 (2019).
5. Buchholz, A. L., Davidson, G., Marks, B. P. & Todd, E. C. D. Quantitative transfer of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during pilot-plant production of fresh-cut leafy greens. J. Food Prot. 75, 1184–1197. https://doi.org/10.4315/0362-028X.JFP-11-489 (2012).