Exploring the Ambiguous Status of Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci in the Biosafety of Fermented Meats: The Case of Antibacterial Activity Versus Biogenic Amine Formation

Abstract

A total of 332 staphylococcal strains, mainly isolated from meat, were screened for antibacterial activity. Eighteen strains exhibited antibacterial activity towards species within the same genus. These antibacterial strains were further screened against Clostridium botulinum, to assess their potential as anticlostridial starter cultures for the development of fermented meat products without added nitrate or nitrite. Only Staphylococcus sciuri IMDO-S72 had the ability to inhibit all clostridial strains tested, whilst displaying additional activity against Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus. Apart from their potential as bioprotective cultures, the staphylococcal collection was also screened for biogenic amine production, as these compounds may compromise food quality. To this end, ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) was applied. A low incidence of biogenic amine production was found, with tyramine and β-phenylethylamine being the most prevalent ones. Concentrations remained relatively low (< 52 mg/L) after a prolonged incubation period, posing no or little threat towards food safety. Taken together, S. sciuri IMDO-S72 could serve as an interesting candidate for the bioprotection of fermented meats as it showed promising antibacterial activity as well as absence of biogenic amine production.

Bacterial community succession and biogenic amine changes during fermentation of fish‐chili paste inoculated with different commercial starter cultures

“…Putrescine (PUT) and cadaverine (CAD) were not detected in all samples at the initial stage of fermentation, but they sharply increased in NS samples after eight weeks of fermentation, much higher than those in groups SBM and WBX. It has been reported that PUT and CAD are linked with the presence of enterobacteria (Van der Veken et al ., 2020), Aeromonas and Pseudomonas (Liu et al ., 2018). The concentration of tyramine (TYR), spermine (SPM) and spermidine (SPD) in NS samples increased during the fermentation, while the content of the three biogenic amines fluctuated in the samples of SBM and WBX and was much lower than those in NS samples.…”

The rotation of primary starter culture mixtures results in batch-to-batch variations during Gouda cheese production

“…The concentrations of agmatine, cadaverine, histamine, 2-phenylethylamine, putrescine, spermidine, spermine, tryptamine, and tyramine were quantified with external calibration, in triplicate, by UPLC-MS/MS, using an Acquity system equipped with an HSS T3 column (Waters), as described previously ( Van der Veken et al, 2020 ). Samples were prepared by addition of 300 μL of acetonitrile (Merck) with 0.2% heptafluorobutyric acid (Sigma-Aldrich) to 300 μL of aqueous extracts, followed by microcentrifugation at 18,000 × g for 15 min, and filtering with a 0.2-μm LG H-PTFE filter (Millex; Merck) before injection (5 μL) into the column.…”

Genome-Based Characterization of a Plasmid-Associated Micrococcin P1 Biosynthetic Gene Cluster and Virulence Factors in Mammaliicoccus sciuri IMDO-S72

“…In this study, M. sciuri (strain IMDO-S72) was associated with the production of the thiopeptide micrococcin P1. This strain was originally isolated from fermented meat and attracted interest because of its potent antibacterial activity towards Clostridium botulinum and other foodborne pathogens in previous research (43). The present study aimed at identifying the compound responsible for this antibacterial activity as well as the characterization of the BGC necessary for its production.…”