Inhibition of Salmonella Enteritidis by Essential Oil Components and the Effect of Storage on the Quality of Chicken

Abstract

This research investigates the antibacterial potential of plant essential oil components including thymol, carvacrol, citral, cinnamaldehyde, limonene, and β-pinene against Salmonella Enteritidis (S. Enteritidis). Through the determination of minimum inhibitory concentration, three kinds of natural antibacterial agents with the best inhibitory effect on S. Enteritidis were determined, namely thymol (128 μg/mL), carvacrol (256 μg/mL), and cinnamaldehyde (128 μg/mL). Physical, chemical, microbial, and sensory characteristics were regularly monitored on days 0, 2, 4, and 6. The findings of this study reveal that both thymol at MIC of 128 μg/mL and carvacrol at MIC of 256 μg/mL not only maintained the sensory quality of chicken, but also decreased the pH, moisture content, and TVB-N value. Additionally, thymol, carvacrol and cinnamaldehyde successfully inhibited the formation of S. Enteritidis biofilm, thereby minimizing the number of S. Enteritidis and the total aerobic plate count in chicken. Hence, thymol, carvacrol, and cinnamaldehyde have more effective inhibitory activities against S. Enteritidis, which can effectively prevent the spoilage of chicken and reduce the loss of its functional components.

Determination of cinnamaldehyde, thymol and eugenol in essential oils by LC-MS/MS and antibacterial activity of them against bacteria

“…Combining two or more compounds could be more effective for improving antioxidant and antimicrobial activity and could offer a synergistic potential (Jaradat et al 2017). The use of plant EOs as antibacterial agents not only implies greater safety for humans and a more environmentally friendly option due to their natural origin, but also represents a low risk of pathogenic microorganisms developing resistance (Wang et al 2023). However, the use of phytochemicals to prevent foodborne microbes is poorly studied.…”