Destruction of Listeria monocytogenes by Sodium Hypochlorite and Quaternary Ammonium Sanitizers

1989 ◽  
Vol 52 (5) ◽  
pp. 306-311 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. MUSTAPHA ◽  
M. B. LIEWEN

The antimicrobial effects of two commonly used dairy plant sanitizers on Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 7644 were studied. The two sanitizers used were commercial sodium hypochlorite and quaternary ammonium compound (QAC). The effects were studied on L. monocytogenes in vitro and on stainless steel chips inoculated with the organism. Cells were exposed to concentrations of 0, 50, 100, 200, 400, and 800 ppm chlorine and QAC for 1, 2, and 5 minutes, and neutralized with tryptic soy broth. Decreases in cell numbers ranged from 3-logs to >4-logs in vitro, whereas with the stainless steel, it ranged from 1-log to >4-logs. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) studies were done to evaluate the attachment characteristics of L. monocytogenes as compared to those of Escherichia coli on stainless steel. L. monocytogenes was found to produce a fibrous-like material similar in appearance to acidic polysaccharide fibrils produced by Pseudomonas sp., which appeared to be removed by the sanitizer solutions.

2002 ◽  
Vol 65 (7) ◽  
pp. 1129-1133 ◽  
Author(s):  
JANNE M. LUNDÉN ◽  
TIINA J. AUTIO ◽  
HANNU J. KORKEALA

The possibility of the transfer of persistent Listeria monocytogenes contamination from one plant to another with a dicing machine was evaluated, and possible reasons for persistent contamination were analyzed. A dicing machine that diced cooked meat products was transferred from plant A to plant B and then to plant C. After the transfer of the dicing machine, L. monocytogenes PFGE type I, originally found in plant A, was soon also found in plants B and C. This L. monocytogenes PFGE type I caused persistent contamination of the dicing lines in plants B and C. The persistent L. monocytogenes strain and three nonpersistent L. monocytogenes strains found in the dicing line of plant C were tested for adherence to stainless steel surfaces and minimal inhibitory concentrations of a quaternary ammonium compound and sodium hypochlorite, disinfectants widely used in the dicing lines. The persistent strain showed significantly higher adherence to stainless steel surfaces than did the nonpersistent strains. The minimal inhibitory concentrations of sodium hypochlorite were similar for all strains, and the minimal inhibitory concentrations of the quaternary ammonium compound for three of the L. monocytogenes PFGE types, including the persistent PFGE type, were high. All persistent L. monocytogenes PFGE type I isolates were found in an area with high hygienic standards, with the dicing machine being the first point of contamination. These observations show that the dicing machine sustained the contamination and suggest that the dicing machine transferred the persistent L. monocytogenes PFGE type from one plant to another.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fengmin Li ◽  
Zhihan Xian ◽  
Hee Jin Kwon ◽  
Jiyoon Yoo ◽  
Laurel Burall ◽  
...  

Abstract Background An effective environmental sampling method involves the use of a transport/neutralizing broth with the ability to neutralize sanitizer residues that are collected during sampling and to maintain viability of stressed Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) cells. Results We applied Lm onto stainless steel surfaces and then subjected Lm to desiccation stress for 16–18 h at room temperature (RT, 21–24 °C). This was followed by the subsequent application of Whisper™ V, a quaternary ammonium compound (QAC)-based sanitizer, diluted to 400 ppm and 8000 ppm of active quat, for 6 h. We then sampled Lm with sponges pre-moistened in three transport broths, Dey/Engley (D/E) broth, Letheen broth and HiCap™ broth, to generate environmental samples that contained sanitizer residues and low levels of stressed Lm, which were subsequently analyzed by an enrichment-based method. This scheme conformed with validation guidelines of AOAC International by using 20 environmental test portions per broth that contained low levels of Lm such that not all test portions were positive (i.e., fractional positive). We showed that D/E broth, Letheen broth and HiCap™ broth performed similarly when no quat or 400 ppm of quat was applied to the Lm contaminating stainless steel surfaces. However, when 8000 ppm of quat was applied, Letheen broth did not effectively neutralize the QAC in the samples. These comparisons were performed on samples stored under three conditions after collection to replicate scenarios of sample transport, RT for 2 h, 4 °C for 24 h and 4 °C for 72 h. Comparisons under the three different scenarios generally reached the same conclusions. In addition, we further demonstrated that storing Letheen and HiCap™ broths at RT for two months before sampling did not reduce their capacity to neutralize sanitizers. Conclusions We developed a scheme to evaluate the ability of transport broths to neutralize QAC sanitizers. The three transport broths performed similarly with a commonly used concentration of quat, but Letheen broth could not effectively neutralize a very high concentration of QAC. The performance of transport broths was not significantly affected under the assessed pre-sampling and post-sampling storage conditions.


2014 ◽  
Vol 77 (12) ◽  
pp. 2012-2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. CHAITIEMWONG ◽  
W. C. HAZELEGER ◽  
R. R. BEUMER

To simulate food contact surfaces with pits or cracks, stainless steel plates with grooves (depths between 0.2 and 5 mm) were constructed. These plates were artificially contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes in clean conditions, with organic soiling, or after 14 days of biofilm formation after which inactivation of the pathogen by Suma Tab D4 (sodium dichloroisocyanurate, 240 and 300 mg/liter), Suma Bac D10 (quaternary ammonium compound, 740 mg/liter), and bacteriophage suspension (Listex P100) was determined. Both chemical disinfectants performed well in suspension tests and in clean carrier tests according to the European standard with a reduction of more than 5 and 4 log units, respectively, of Listeria cells after 5 min of contact time. However, for the plates with grooves, the reduction could not meet the standard requirement, although a higher reduction of L. monocytogenes was observed in the shallow grooves compared with the deeper grooves. Furthermore, presence of food residues and biofilm reduced the effect of the disinfectants especially in the deep grooves, which was dependent on type of food substrate. Bacteriophages showed the best antimicrobial effect compared with the chemical disinfectants (sodium dichloroisocyanurate and quaternary ammonium compound) in most cases in the shallow grooves, but not in the deep grooves. The chlorine based disinfectants were usually less effective than quaternary ammonium compound. The results clearly demonstrate that surfaces with grooves influenced the antimicrobial effect of the chemical disinfectants and bacteriophages because the pathogen is protected in the deep grooves. The use of bacteriophages to inactivate pathogens on surfaces could be helpful in limited cases; however, use of large quantities in practice may be costly and phage-resistant strains may develop.


1984 ◽  
Vol 47 (10) ◽  
pp. 756-759 ◽  
Author(s):  
TINA S. SCHWACH ◽  
EDMUND A. ZOTTOLA

Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) was used to demonstrate the effects of rinsing with water and various concentrations of sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) on extracellular attachment fibers of Pseudomonas fragi (ATCC 4793), Salmonella montevideo, and Bacillus cereus (F4165/75) attached to stainless steel chips. Results indicated that use of a water rinse before sanitization with NaOCl was not sufficient to eliminate attached microorganisms and debris.


Author(s):  
Solange Gahongayire ◽  
Adamu Almustapha Aliero ◽  
Charles Drago Kato ◽  
Alice Namatovu

Bacterial infections are on a rise with causal-resistant strains increasing the economic burden to both patients and healthcare providers. Salons are recently reported as one of the sources for transmission of such resistant bacterial strains. The current study aimed at the identification of the prevalent bacteria and characterization of quaternary ammonium compound (qac) genes from disinfectant-resistant S. aureus isolated from salon tools in Ishaka town, Bushenyi District of Uganda. A total of 125 swabs were collected from different salon tools (combs, brushes, scissors, clippers, and shaving machines), and prevalent bacteria were isolated using standard microbiological methods. Identification of isolated bacteria was done using standard phenotypic methods including analytical profile index (API). Susceptibility patterns of the isolated bacteria to disinfectant were determined using the agar well diffusion method. Quaternary ammonium compound (qac) genes (qacA/B and qacC) associated with disinfectant resistances were detected from disinfectant-resistant S. aureus using multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Sanger sequencing methods. Of the 125 swab samples collected from salons, 78 (62.4%) were contaminated with different bacteria species. Among the salon tools, clippers had the highest contamination of 20 (80.0%), while shaving machines had the lowest contamination of 11 (44.0%). The most prevalent bacteria identified were Staphylococcus epidermidis (28.1%) followed by S. aureus (26.5%). Of all the disinfectants tested, the highest resistance was shown with sodium hypochlorite 1%. Out of the eight (8) disinfectant-resistant S. aureus analysed for qac genes, 2 (25%) isolates (STP6 and STP9) were found to be qacA/B positive, while 2 (25%) isolates (STP8 and STP9) were found to be qacC gene positive. This study has shown that bacterial contamination of salon tools is common, coupled with resistance to disinfectants with sodium hypochlorite resistance being more common. Furthermore, observed resistance was attributed to the presence of qac genes among S. aureus isolates. A search for qac genes for disinfectant resistance from other bacteria species is recommended.


2006 ◽  
Vol 69 (6) ◽  
pp. 1292-1296 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAMES P. FOLSOM ◽  
JOSEPH F. FRANK

Strains of Listeria monocytogenes vary in their ability to produce biofilms. This research determined if cell density, planktonic chlorine resistance, or subtype are associated with the resistance of L. monocytogenes biofilms to chlorine. Thirteen strains of L. monocytogenes were selected for this research based on biofilm accumulation on stainless steel and rep-PCR subtyping. These strains were challenged with chlorine to determine the resistance of individual strains of L. monocytogenes. Planktonic cells were exposed to 20 to 80 ppm sodium hypochlorite in 20 ppm increments for 5 min in triplicate per replication, and the experiment was replicated three times. The number of tubes with surviving L. monocytogenes was recorded for each isolate at each level of chlorine. Biofilms of each strain were grown on stainless steel coupons. The biofilms were exposed 60 ppm of sodium hypochlorite. When in planktonic culture, four strains were able to survive exposure to 40 ppm of chlorine, whereas four strains were able to survive 80 ppm of chlorine in at least one of three tubes. The remaining five strains survived exposure to 60 ppm of chlorine. Biofilms of 11 strains survived exposure to 60 ppm of chlorine. No association of biofilm chlorine resistance and planktonic chlorine resistance was observed; however, biofilm chorine resistance was similar for strains of the same subtype. Biofilm cell density was not associated with chlorine resistance. In addition, biofilms that survived chlorine treatment exhibited different biofilm morphologies. These data suggest that chlorine resistance mechanisms of planktonic cells and biofilms differ, with planktonic chlorine resistance being more affected by inducible traits, and biofilm chlorine resistance being more affected by traits not determined in this study.


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