Antibacterial protection by enterocin AS-48 in sport and energy drinks with less acidic pH values.
The low pH and acid content found in sports and energy drinks are a matter of concern in dental health. Raising the pH may solve this problem, but at the same time increase the risks of spoilage or presence of pathogenic bacteria. In the present study, commercial energy drinks were adjusted to pH 5.0 and challenged with Listeria monocytogenes (drinks A to F), Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, and Bacillus licheniformis (drink A) during storage at 37 degrees C. L. monocytogenes was able to grow in drink A and survived in drinks D and F for at least 2 days. Addition of enterocin AS-48 (1 microg/ml final concentration) rapidly inactivated L. monocytogenes in all drinks tested. S. aureus and B. cereus also survived quite well in drink A, and were completely inactivated by 12.5 microg/ml enterocin AS-48 after 2 days of storage or by 25 microg/ml bacteriocin after 1 day. B. licheniformis was able to multiply in drink A, but it was completely inactivated by 5 microg/ml enterocin AS-48 after 2 days of storage or by 12.5 microg/ml bacteriocin after 1 day. Results from the present study suggest that enterocin AS-48 could be used as a natural preservative against these target bacteria in less acidic sport and energy drinks.
Area de Microbiología, Departamento de Ciencias de la Salud, Facultad de Ciencias Experimentales, Universidad de Jaén, Jaén, Spain.
Pilar Martinez
PM
Viedma
Hikmate
H
Abriouel
Nabil
N
Ben Omar
Rosario Lucas
RL
López
Eva
E
Valdivia
Antonio
A
Gálvez
D001430:Bacteriocins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001628:Beverages / Q000032:analysis* / Q000382:microbiology*; D005516:Food Microbiology; D005519:Food Preservation / Q000379:methods; D005520:Food Preservatives / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005524:Food Technology; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D013177:Sports
D001430:Bacteriocins; D005520:Food Preservatives; C466236:enterocin AS-48, Enterococcus faecalis