Listeria monocytogenes em linguiças do tipo frescal vendidas a varejo no município de Salvador-BA e eficácia do bacteriófago P100 no controle da contaminação pelo patógeno.

AUTOR(ES)
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO

2009

RESUMO

The outbreaks of Food-borne Diseases are a reason of concern for the food industries and public health organs. Listeria monocytogenes is known as an important pathogen causing diseases transmitted by food and its importance has been growing since the 1980s. Although the number of disease cases per year is relatively low, the infection can be serious, with lethality rate at 30%. Research works conducted in Brazil reported an incidence of 32% in meat product samples with an isolation rate of 80% in Brazilian fresh sausage (linguiça do tipo frescal) made with pork meat. Despite the recent technological advancements in pathogen control in foods, consumers have sought natural foods, i.e., foods submitted to less aggressive treatments without chemical preservatives. In 2007, the Department of Agriculture of the United States (USDA) and the North America Agency Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of LISTEXTM P100, a bacteriophage specific for the control of Listeria monocytogenes, for all types of food. Bacteriophages are viruses that infect only bacteria and do not infect animal or plant cells. They are widely distributed in the environment and humans are exposed to them at high concentrations through water and foods, without any adverse effect to health. The role played by meat in human nutrition, associated to the need of offering an innocuous food, incapable of transmitting diseases to humans, has led to the development of this research, whose objectives were to verify the incidence of Listeria monocytogenes in Brazilian fresh sausages sold in commercial establishments in the city of Salvador-BA and to evaluate the efficacy of the antimicrobial agent bacteriophage P100 (LISTEXTM P100) in the cells of Listeria monocytogenes artificially inoculated in the food. Forty samples of type pork Brazilian fresh sausages and 40 samples of chicken, of different commercial brands were taken. Listeria spp was isolated in 12 samples (15%) of which three (3.75%) were positive for L. monocytogenes. Among the species, L. innocua was isolated with greater frequency in 11 samples (13.75%); the two species were detected in two samples. The strains of L. monocytogenes isolated from the samples belonged to the serotype a. When investigating the efficacy in the use of the bacteriophage P100 in controlling Brazilian fresh sausage contamination by the microorganism, the results showed a reduction of three logarithmic cycles in the initial population of the microorganism, a statistically significant difference (p<0.05). A significant difference (p<0.05) was also found when 0 (zero) time treatment was compared with time 10 treatment, showing increase in the pathogens population in the food after 10 days of storage and the need to use a phage with a higher titer.

ASSUNTO(S)

bacteriófago listeria monocytogenes farmacia segurança alimentar alimentos embutidos listeria monocytogenes bacteriophage

ACESSO AO ARTIGO

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