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This research evaluated the inactivation of a heat-resistant Aspergillus niger conidia in mango nectar by high-pressure homogenization (HPH) combined with heat shock. A. niger were inoculated in mango nectar (10(6) conidia mL(-1)) and subjected to HPH (300 to 100 MPa) and heat shock (80 degrees C for 5 to 20 min) before or after HPH. Processes were evaluated according to number of decimal reductions reached by each isolated or combined process. Scanning electron microscopy was performed to observe conidia wall after pressure treatment. Pressures below 150 MPa did not inactivate A. niger while pressures of 200 and 300 MPa resulted in 2 and more than 6 log reductions, respectively. D(80 degrees C) of A. niger was determined as 5.03 min. A heat shock of 80 degrees C/15 min, reaching 3 decimal conidia reductions, was applied before or after a 200 MPa pressure treatment to improve the decimal reduction to 5 log cycles. Results indicated that HPH inactivated A. niger in mango nectar at 300 MPa (>6.24 log cycles) and that, with pressure (200 MPa) combined with post heat shock, it was possible to obtain the same decimal reduction, showing a synergistic effect. On the other hand, pre heat shock associated with HPH resulted in an additive effect. The observation of A. niger conidia treated by HPH at 100 and 200 MPa by scanning electron microscopy indicated that HPH promoted intense cell wall damage, which can sensitize the conidia to post heat shock and possibly explain the synergistic effect observed. Practical Application: The results obtained in this paper are relevant to elucidate the mechanism of conidia inactivation in order to develop the application of HPH as an alternative pasteurization process for the fruit nectar industry.

The results obtained in this study show that the conidia can be inactivated by applying HPH with heat shock, particularly to apply HPH as an option to pasteurize fruit nectar for industries.

The inactivation of spoilage microorganisms in beer using high-pressure homogenization (HPH) was studied with the aim of evaluating the possibility of changing the conventional pasteurization process using this particular process. The homogenization pressure required for the inactivation of lactic acid bacteria, acetic bacteria and yeasts was investigated. For the most resistant microorganisms, the pressure inactivation kinetics and the effects of multiple process passes, initial temperature of the beer and the CO 2 concentration were studied. The results indicated that Lactobacillus delbrueckii was the most resistant microorganism tested, requiring 250 MPa to reach a six decimal reduction. Additionally, results showed that L. delbrueckii inactivation followed a second-order kinetic process. A multi-pass process and the use of a high initial beer temperature increased inactivation by HPH with L. delbrueckii, allowing the use of 150 MPa to achieve a five log cycle of inactivation. In contrast, a high CO 2 concentration reduced the efficacy of the HPH process. The results that were obtained are useful for high-pressure homogenization applications in breweries and help to elucidate the effect of this new technology in a beverage that is both alcoholic and carbonated.

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