US-Turkey Cooperative Research: Combination of High Hydrostatic Pressure (HHP)and Bacteriocins to Inactivate Foodborne Bacteria in Milk and Orange Juice

Ohio State University Research Foundation -Do Not Use, Columbus OH

Investigators

Abstract

0096915 Kaletunc Description: This award is for support of a cooperative project by Dr. Gonul Kaletunc, Department of Food, Agriculture and Biological Engineering, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio and a Turkish team led by Dr. Faruk Bozoglu, Food Engineering Department, Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey. They plan to investigate the antimicrobial effectiveness of High Hydrostatic Pressure (HHP) alone and in combination with bacteriocins in bacteriological food liquids such as broth, milk and orange juice. A Gram-positive pathogen, Listeria monocytogenes CA and a Gram-negative foodborne pathogen, Salmonella enteridis FDA, and a spoilage bacteria Pseudomonas fluorscens FM1 will be used to inoculate milk and orange juice products prior to pressure treatment. The data will provide quantitative information on the deactivation kinetics of selected microorganisms as a function of pressure and bacteriocin concentration. Inclusion of the thermal and rheological characterization of pressure/bacteriocin treated products and their comparison with those of thermally-processed materials will provide information on the stability, quality, and consumer acceptability of the products in comparison to conventionally used thermal processing. Scope: This is a relatively new area of basic research with the potential for significant industrial application in the food and other industries. Dr. Bozoglu has expertise in food microbiology and has been working on HHP application to food preservation. A graduate student in his laboratory would be involved in the project. Dr. Kaletunc's expertise is in the physical characterization of food materials, and her laboratory is equipped with especially modern equipment needed for this research. This proposal meets the INT objective of supporting collaborative research by US and foreign scientists in areas of mutual benefit. The Division of Bioengineering and Environmental Systems and the Division of International Programs are co-funding this project.