No abstract

In the frame of a project concerning the evaluation of the pollution level and the ozone experimental effect upon some bacterial indicators of a protected ecosystem, water samples were estimated microbiologically before and after saturation with ozone gas for 5, 10, 15, 20 and 30 min. We found that the ozone treatment decreased the concentration in all different bacterial indicators by reducing their number for more than six times after 15 min of application. Total inactivation was observed for C. perfringens vegetative cells. Since there are complex relations between the microbial loading the water characteristics and the action of ozone, further studies are needed to determine the optimum conditions of ozone effect, as its use consists of a promising technology.

The development of treatments to reduce bacterial numbers on poultry carcasses is important for the overall hygienic quality of birds. The important washing effect of the immersion chilling procedure is discussed. Systematic monitoring of fecal bacterial indicators as well as some classic pathogens was performed at selected critical points in a water chiller ecosystem. Clostridium perfringens, fecal coliforms, Enterococcus sp., and Streptococcus sp. were found in all water chiller samples. The temperature of the chiller ecosystem varied according to location: Escherichia coli and Salmonella sp. were found at 16 degrees C, compared with the 4 degrees C location, where these species were found in lower numbers. Moreover, the psychrotrophic bacterium Pseudomonas was found only at this last location. The temperature of the water during the immersion chilling procedure was unfavorable for the growth of Campylobacter sp., whose presence was always strictly associated with a pH close to 6. Spore forms of C. perfringens were persistent in all locations and seemed to be a reliable indicator of contamination of the water chiller ecosystem.

Background: Unpasteurized fermented milk is used for the production of traditional dairy products in certain rural areas of Greece. Methods: In an attempt to search for candidate benefi cial probiotic strains of Enterococcus faecium and Enterococcus faecalis, isolates recovered from traditional dairy products and from faeces of infants fed with such products were evaluated regarding their antimicrobial activity and their standard biochemical profi le. Results: Almost all tested strains showed resistance to a pH range from 3.0 to 6.5, tolerance to bile acid within 24 h and resistance to phenol. Field isolates of E. faecalis and E. faecium presented higher antimicrobial activity against classic food pathogenic serovars of Salmonella enteritica (S. typhi, S. typhimurium, S. ancona, S. enteritidis) compared with reference strains. Conclusion: The implementation of benefi cial enterococcal strains in the production of fermented dairy products is part of technological process in constant development aimed at obtaining food products of increased quality and safety.

Abstract:In order to investigate the Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) of the gut, fecal samples were collected and analyzed from 120 healthy Greek volunteers ranging from age 1 to age 85, all of whom declared daily consumption of local fermented dairy products. LAB strains were isolated using selective media under aerobic or anaerobic conditions. Identification of the isolates was based on their growth patterns, morphological characteristics, and carbohydrate fermentation profiles. There was no significant difference in the abundance of were also recovered, mainly from the adults and elders rather than the children's group. Despite the above differences in LAB species observed mostly between the younger and the other two age groups, differences were also observed within all groups, indicating that healthy subjects of all ages are colonized by a diverse lactoflora in terms of total or dominant species.© Versita Warsaw and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.