The effect of pt-I values of 6.5, 6.0, 5.0, and 4.0 on spore germination of Bacillus cereus (B. cereus) was investigated at water activity (a%) values of 0.98, 0.96, 0.94, and 0.90 in a controlled medium at 30°C for 7 days. The best condition for germination of spores of B. cereus was observed at pH 6.5 with aw 0.98. No matter what combination of a and pH is used, a complete inhibition of spore germination was achieved at either a,.. value of 0.90 or pH value of 4.0. Spore germination was also delayed or inhibited at aw 0.98 with pH 4.0, aw 0.96 with pH 5.0, and aw 0.94 with pH 6.5, 6.0, 5.0, or 4.0. The results indicate that the combined inhibitory effects of pH and water activity on the germination of B. cereus spores in controlled medium could be applied to food preservation.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the TEMPOⓇ STA automated most probable number (MPN) system for the enumeration of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) in comparison with a standard culture method. Artificially inoculated food products with S. aureus - triangle kimbap, sliced spring onion, dried filefish fillet, danpatjuk (sweet red-bean porridge with small rice dumplings)- were tested in this study. Twenty-five grams of each of food samples were added into 225 ㎖ of sterilized phosphate buffered saline in a TEMPOⓇ stomacher bag followed by stomaching for 2 min. One milliliter of the stomached sample was added to a bottle of culture medium. Cards were filled and sealed in the automated filler and then were incubated for 24 h at 37℃. After incubation, the cards were placed in the automated TEMPOⓇ reader and MPN results were generated. For comparison with a culture method, decimal dilutions were prepared from the same homogenized samples described above, transferred onto Baird Parker and Baird Parker-Rabbit Plasma Fibrinogen (BP-RPF) agar plates, and then incubated at 37℃ for 24 h. The performance of TEMPOⓇ STA method is equivalent to the culture method using Baird Parker or BP-RPF agar count plate for the enumeration of S. aureus in foods, eliminating a time-consuming and laborious process.

Real-time PCR could help to provide answers to urgent questions about the incidence, prevalence, and epidemiology of currently emerging food-borne bacteria and diseases as identification and detection tools. The objective of this study was carried out to examine several critical parameters that must be optimized when converting from the ABI Prism 7000 SDS platform to the Cepheid SmartCycler Ⅱ so as to directly use the same primer and probe sequences. A lyophilized master mix-OmniMix HS bead, MgCl2 concentration, and PCR cycling conditions were evaluated so as to convert to a new platform, Smartcycler Ⅱ. The best optimal cycling conditions to detect Cronobacter sakazakii on SmartCycler Ⅱ were as follow: initial denaturation at 95℃ for 2 min followed by 45 cycles of 95℃ for 15 s, and 60℃ for 60 s using OmniMix HS bead contained 6 mM MgCl2 concentration. And the Ct value was 16.97 compared to 23.84 of Ct value in ABI Prism 7000 SDS. This result showed that when the several analytical parameters were taken the consideration for optimization, it could be performed assays between real-time PCR platforms. Also it is need of further study to develop the new single multiplex real-time PCR method for determining various Cronobacter spp. including three subspecies, too.

This study was carried out to evaluate the microbiological characteristics of retail chicken meats stored under various conditions. Nine of whole chickens and nine of chicken breasts were used for bacterial analysis. Each chicken meat was divided into subsamples of 25 g each followed by storage at room temperature (25℃), refrigeration temperature (4 ℃), and freezing temperature (—20℃) for 180 min, 5 days, and 3 days, respectively. The standard plate counts were performed for the enumeration of the total aerobic bacteria. The number of aerobic bacteria was gradually increased by 1 log in samples held at the room temperature for 180 min. There was statistical difference in the number of bacteria between at 0 min and at 180 min of storage. For samples stored at 4℃ for 5 days, the number of bacteria was increased from 5.11 to 7.26 log CFU/g in chicken breast and 3.83 to 6.04 log CFU/g in whole chicken with statistical difference. No significant changes were observed in frozen chicken. The results of this study may provide useful information to consumers for proper storage and safe handling of chicken meats.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus (V. parahaemolyticus) has been recognized as a significant food-borne pathogen around the world. In this study, we investigated the prevalence and antimicrobial resistance of V. parahaemolyticus isolated from raw fishes. A total of 64 samples of raw fishes purchased from a traditional seafood market in Seoul, Korea. were examined for the presence of V. parahaemolyticus using intestines, gills, and fins. Twenty five grams of all samples were enriched in 225ml of alkaline peptone water at 37℃ for 24h and then streaked onto thiosulfate citrate bile sucrose agar. Suspected colonies were inoculated into triple sugar iron agar for biochemical screening test and were finally confirmed with API 20NE strip. Antimicrobial resistance tests were performed with disc diffusion method in accordance with National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standard. Thirty three V. parahaemolyticus strains were isolated from raw fishes among 33 out of 64 (51.6%). Among 33 isolates, 16 isolates (48.5%) were resistant to ampicillin, 7 isolates (21.2%) were resistant to amikacin, and all isolates were not resist to other antibiotics such as amoxicillin & clavulanic acid, sulfamethoxazole & trimethopenem, ciprofloxacin, cefotaxime and cefepime. Although the prevalence of V. parahaemolyticus was high in raw fishes compared to other studies, antimicrobial resistance rate of the isolates was relatively low. These results could be useful information for risk assessment of V. parahaemolyticus in raw fishes.