The effectiveness of radiant catalytic ionization in inactivation ofListeria monocytogenesplanktonic and biofilm cells from food and food contact surfaces as a method of food preservation

Abstract

Searching of new actions aimed at the reduction of the microbial contamination of food and food contact surfaces are extremely important. RCI method has been already described as an effective technique of microbial and abiotic pollution removal from air. However, our studies provide new, additional data related to evaluation the RCI efficacy against microbes on different surfaces, both in planktonic and biofilm form.

The Antimicrobial Effect of Radiant Catalytic Ionization on the Bacterial Attachment and Biofilm Formation by Selected Foodborne Pathogens under Refrigeration Conditions

“…The inhibition of pathogenic microorganisms on various surfaces was confirmed by our previous studies [8,26,27]. The reduction rate of the L. monocytogenes number in biofilms formed on different surfaces (rubber, milled rock tiles, polypropylene) varied from 3.92% to 70.10%, whereas in the case of stainless steel AISI 304 and lacquered veneer surfaces, up to 95% of L. monocytogenes and S. Enteritidis were reduced [26]. Saini et al [39] achieved 4.37 log CFU reduction of the L. monocytogenes number on stainless steel coupons after 15 min of photohydroionization (PHI) treatment.…”

“…The antimicrobial efficiency of RCI is attributed to the cell damaging effect of oxidative gases, including ozone and peroxide, generated by the RCI cell [25,28]. The inhibition of pathogenic microorganisms on various surfaces was confirmed by our previous studies [8,26,27]. The reduction rate of the L. monocytogenes number in biofilms formed on different surfaces (rubber, milled rock tiles, polypropylene) varied from 3.92% to 70.10%, whereas in the case of stainless steel AISI 304 and lacquered veneer surfaces, up to 95% of L. monocytogenes and S. Enteritidis were reduced [26].…”

“…Since many foodborne human pathogens are able to form biofilm on various surfaces, widely used in the food processing environment, the risk of food cross-contamination during production increases. Many pathogenic bacteria are known to adhere to, and subsequently, form biofilm on the food and food contact surfaces, such as stainless steel, plastic, glass, or rubber [8,11,12,26,27,31,32]. In the present study, all the tested species formed biofilm on the glass surface after 72 h at 4 • C. The strongest biofilm was observed for S. Enteritidis.…”

“…The efficiency of radiant catalytic ionization is determined by a variety of factors, including type and physiological state of microorganisms, properties of the contaminated surface, environmental conditions, and parameters of the ionization process [26,41,42]. The sensitivity to irradiation is speciesand strain-dependent and may be associated with the origin of the strain, the metabolic state of cells, and the ability to form biofilm [26]. The results obtained by Yang et al [40] suggest less sensitivity to photohydroionization of the non-antimicrobial resistant (non-AMR) Salmonella strain compared to AMR Salmonella.…”

“…The lower effectiveness of disinfection agents against bacterial biofilm compared to planktonic forms is a well-documented and undoubtful fact [26,32,[46][47][48][49]. It is speculated that the biofilm extracellular polymeric substances (EPSs) may serve as the primary target of ROS and protect the associated bacteria cells [32].…”