ABSTRACTThe microbiological safety of fresh produce is monitored almost exclusively by culture-based detection methods. However, bacterial food-borne pathogens are known to enter a viable-but-nonculturable (VBNC) state in response to environmental stresses such as chlorine, which is commonly used for fresh produce decontamination. Here, complete VBNC induction of green fluorescent protein-taggedListeria monocytogenesandSalmonella entericaserovar Thompson was achieved by exposure to 12 and 3 ppm chlorine, respectively. The pathogens were subjected to chlorine washing following incubation on spinach leaves. Culture data revealed that total viableL. monocytogenesandSalmonellaThompson populations became VBNC by 50 and 100 ppm chlorine, respectively, while enumeration by direct viable counting found that chlorine caused a <1-log reduction in viability. The pathogenicity of chlorine-induced VBNCL. monocytogenesandSalmonellaThompson was assessed by usingCaenorhabditis elegans. Ingestion of VBNC pathogens byC. elegansresulted in a significant life span reduction (P= 0.0064 andP< 0.0001), and no significant difference between the life span reductions caused by the VBNC and culturableL. monocytogenestreatments was observed.L. monocytogeneswas visualized beyond the nematode intestinal lumen, indicating resuscitation and cell invasion. These data emphasize the risk that VBNC food-borne pathogens could pose to public health should they continue to go undetected.IMPORTANCEMany bacteria are known to enter a viable-but-nonculturable (VBNC) state in response to environmental stresses. VBNC cells cannot be detected by standard laboratory culture techniques, presenting a problem for the food industry, which uses these techniques to detect pathogen contaminants. This study found that chlorine, a sanitizer commonly used for fresh produce, induces a VBNC state in the food-borne pathogensListeria monocytogenesandSalmonella enterica. It was also found that chlorine is ineffective at killing total populations of the pathogens. A life span reduction was observed inCaenorhabditis elegansthat ingested these VBNC pathogens, with VBNCL. monocytogenesas infectious as its culturable counterpart. These data show that VBNC food-borne pathogens can both be generated and avoid detection by industrial practices while potentially retaining the ability to cause disease.
Viable-but-NonculturableListeria monocytogenesandSalmonella entericaSerovar Thompson Induced by Chlorine Stress Remain Infectious
