Plasma‐activated liquids for mitigating biofilms on food and food contact surfaces

Abstract

Plasma‐activated liquids (PALs) are emerging and promising alternatives to traditional decontamination technologies and have evolved as a new technology for applications in food, agriculture, and medicine. Contamination caused by foodborne pathogens and their biofilms has posed challenges and concerns to the food industry in terms of safety and quality. The nature of the food and the food processing environment are major factors that contribute to the growth of various microorganisms, followed by the biofilm characteristics that ensure their survival in severe environmental conditions and against traditional chemical disinfectants. PALs show an efficient impact against microorganisms and their biofilms, with various reactive species (short‐ and long‐lived ones), physiochemical properties, and plasma processing factors playing a crucial role in mitigating biofilms. Moreover, there is potential to improve and optimize disinfection strategies using a combination of PALs with other technologies for the inactivation of biofilms. The overarching aim of this study is to build a better understanding of the parameters that govern the liquid chemistry generated in a liquid exposed to plasma and how these translate into biological effects on biofilms. This review provides a current understanding of PALs‐mediated mechanisms of action on biofilms; however, the precise inactivation mechanism is still not clear and is an important part of the research. Implementation of PALs in the food industry could help overcome the disinfection hurdles and can enhance biofilm inactivation efficacy. Future perspectives in this field to expand existing state of the art to seek breakthroughs for scale‐up and implementation of PALs technology in the food industry are also discussed.

Inactivation pathways of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus induced by transient spark discharge in liquids

“…Likewise, PTL generated by plasma jet caused a stronger bactericidal effect on a number of Gram − bacteria compared to Gram + species. [ 48 ]…”

Recent advances in activated water systems for the postharvest management of quality and safety of fresh fruits and vegetables

“…Water interaction with atmospheric plasma exhibits acidified solution containing various reactive oxygen nitrogen species (RONS). Reactive species, such as hydroxyl radicals ( rate, storage temperature, storage time, water type, liquid temperature, and water conductivity), type of microorganism, and their initial concentration (Zhao et al, 2020(Zhao et al, , 2023. These critical factors should be considered by producers, PAW operators, and FFVs packhouse personnel at the industrial scale.…”

“…Nevertheless, the physicochemical properties, such as concentration of RONS, gases, treatment time, pH, and ORP, are considered to play a dominant role in sanitization of FFVs. In addition, the efficacy of PAW is influenced by processing factors (power, voltage, frequency, plasma treatment time, working gas, gas flow rate, storage temperature, storage time, water type, liquid temperature, and water conductivity), type of microorganism, and their initial concentration (Zhao et al., 2020, 2023). These critical factors should be considered by producers, PAW operators, and FFVs packhouse personnel at the industrial scale.…”

Continuous production and recirculation of plasma‐activated water bubbles under different flow regimes for mixed‐species bacterial biofilm inactivation inside pipelines

“…It can be speculated that the physical and oxidative stress imparted due to the presence of RONS could result in biofilm inactivation (Mai-Prochnow et al, 2021). The formation of ˙OH can have damaging effects on the proteins and the nucleic acid, thus contributing to a higher biofilm inactivation (Zhao et al, 2023). ˙OH radical can abstract the H atom from the lipids and can cause lipid peroxidation, ultimately disrupting the biofilm matrix (Khosravian et al, 2015).…”