The presence of residues of antimicrobial substances in milk is one of the main concerns of the milk industry, as it poses a risk of toxicity to public health, and can seriously influence the technological properties of milk and dairy products. Moreover, the information available on the thermostability characteristics of these residues, particularly regarding the heat treatments used in control laboratories and the dairy industry, is very scarce. The aim of the study was, therefore, to analyze the effect of different heat treatments (40 degrees C for 10 min, 60 degrees C for 30 min, 83 degrees C for 10 min, 120 degrees C for 20 min, and 140 degrees C for 10 s) on milk samples fortified with three concentrations of nine beta-lactam antibiotics (penicillin G: 3, 6, and 12 microg/liter; ampicillin: 4, 8, and 16 microg/liter; amoxicillin: 4, 8, and 16 microg/liter; cloxacillin: 60, 120, and 240 microg/liter; cefoperazone: 55, 110, and 220 microg/liter; cefquinome: 100, 200, and 400 microg/liter; cefuroxime: 65, 130, and 260 microg/liter; cephalexin: 80, 160, and 220 microg/ liter; and cephalonium: 15, 30, and 60 microg/liter). The method used was a bioassay based on the inhibition of Geobacillus stearothermophilus var. calidolactis. The results showed that heating milk samples at 40 degrees C for 10 min hardly produced any heat inactivation at all, while the treatment at 83 degrees C for 10 min caused a 20% loss in penicillin G, 27% in cephalexin, and 35% in cefuroxime. Of the three dairy industry heat treatments studied in this work, low pasteurization (60 degrees C for 30 min) and treatment at 140 degrees C for 10 s only caused a small loss of antimicrobial activity, whereas classic sterilization (120 degrees C for 20 min) showed a high level of heat inactivation of over 65% for penicillins and 90% for cephalosporins.

Antibiotic residues in milk can cause serious problems for consumers and the dairy industry. Heat treatment of milk may diminish the antimicrobial activity of these antibiotic residues. This study analyzed the effect of milk processing (60 °C for 30 min, 120 °C for 20 min, and 140 °C for 10 s) on the antimicrobial activity of milk samples fortified with three concentrations of three macrolides (erythromycin: 20, 40 and 80 μg/liter; spiramycin: 100, 200, and 400 μg/liter; and tylosin: 500, 1,000, and 2,000 μg/liter) and one lincosamide (lincomycin: 1,000, 2,000, and 4,000 μg/liter). To measure the loss of antimicrobial activity, a bioassay based on the growth inhibition of Micrococcus luteus was done. The data were analyzed using a multiple linear regression model. The results indicate that treatment at 120 °C for 20 min produces inactivation percentages of 93% (erythromycin), 64% (spiramycin), 51% (tylosin), and 5% (lincomycin), while treatment at 140 °C for 10 s results in generally lower percentages (30% erythromycin, 35% spiramycin, 12% tylosin, and 5% lincomycin). The lowest loss or lowest reduction of antimicrobial activity (21% erythromycin and 13% spiramycin) was obtained by treatment at 60 °C for 30 min.

The presence of antibiotic residues in milk not only is a potential consumer risk but also may cause serious problems in the fermentation processes used in the dairy industry. There is very limited information available on the effect of heat treatments on aminoglycoside activity in milk. For this reason, the objective of this study was to analyze the effect of different heat treatments (60 degrees C for 30 min, 120 degrees C for 20 min, and 140 degrees C for 10 s) on milk samples spiked with four aminoglycosides (gentamicin, 50, 100, and 200 microg/liter; kanamycin, 300, 600, and 1200 microg/liter, neomycin, 200, 400, and 800 microg/liter; and streptomycin, 200, 400, and 800 microg/liter). The method used was a bioassay based on the inhibition of Bacillus subtilis BGA. Statistical analysis of the three heat treatments studied showed that the one at 60 degrees C for 30 min did not inactivate the aminoglycosides, the treatment at 140 degrees C for 10 s produced inactivation levels of between 17% for kanamycin and 40% for neomycin, and the classic sterilization (120 degrees C for 20 min) showed a high heat inactivation (>95%) for all the concentrations of aminoglycosides tested with respect to the samples without treatment (control group).

La presencia de residuos de antibióticos en la leche no solamente produce un potencial riesgo para la salud del consumidor, sino que además, ocasiona serios problemas en los procesos fermentativos utilizados en la industria láctea. Por este motivo, el presente trabajo evalúa el efecto que producen aquellos tratamientos térmicos utilizados en la industria láctea (40ºC-10 min, 60ºC-30 min, 83ºC-10 min, 120ºC-20 min y 140ºC-10 s) sobre la actividad antimicrobiana de muestras de leche fortificadas con tetraciclinas (clortetraciclina, doxiciclina, oxitetraciclina y tetraciclina). Para la medición de la pérdida de actividad antimicrobiana se empleó un bioensayo basado en la inhibición del crecimiento de Bacillus cereus subssp. mycoides ATCC11778. Para cada antibiótico se ensayaron tres concentraciones. Los datos se analizaron utilizando el modelo de regresión lineal múltiple. Los resultados señalan que la esterilización clásica (120ºC-20 min) produce pérdidas que superan el 90% para clortetraciclina, 84% para doxiciclina, 89% para oxitetraciclina y 91% para tetraciclina, mientras que el calentamiento a 140ºC-10 s produce bajas pérdidas de actividad antimicrobiana (29% clortetraciclina, 39% doxiciclina, 17% oxitetraciclina y 29% tetraciclina), similares a la baja pasteurización (60ºC-30 minutos) (31% clortetraciclina, 18% doxiciclina, 23% oxitetraciclina y 21% tetraciclina). Los tratamientos térmicos de laboratorio (40ºC-10 min y 83ºC-10 min) ocasionan pérdidas de actividad antimicrobiana aún menores.