title: Pepsin-digested bovine lactoferrin prevents Mozzarella cheese blue discoloration caused by Pseudomonas fluorescens.
abstract: The aim of this work was to check the efficacy of bovine lactoferrin hydrolyzed by pepsin (LFH) to prevent blue discoloration of Mozzarella cheese delaying the growth of the related spoilage bacteria. Among 64 Pseudomonas fluorescens strains, isolated from 105 Mozzarella samples, only ten developed blue discoloration in cold-stored Mozzarella cheese slices. When Mozzarella cheese samples from dairy were treated with LFH and inoculated with a selected P. fluorescens strain, no pigmentation and changes in casein profiles were found up to 14 days of cold storage. In addition, starting from day 5, the count of P. fluorescens spoiling strain was steadily ca. one log cycle lower than that of LFH-free samples. ESI-Orbitrap-based mass spectrometry analyses allowed to reveal the pigment leucoindigoidine only in the blue LFH-free cheese samples indicating that this compound could be considered a chemical marker of this alteration. For the first time, an innovative mild approach, based on the antimicrobial activity of milk protein hydrolysates, for counteracting blue Mozzarella event and controlling psychrotrophic pigmenting pseudomonads, is here reported.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sciences of Food Production, National Research Council of Italy, Via G. Amendola 122/O, 70126 Bari, Italy. Electronic address: leonardo.caputo@ispa.cnr.it.
authors.forename: Leonardo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Caputo
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sciences of Food Production, National Research Council of Italy, Via G. Amendola 122/O, 70126 Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Quintieri
authors.affiliation: S.C. Controllo Alimenti e Igiene delle Produzioni, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Via Bologna, 148, 10154 Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Daniela Manila
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Bianchi
authors.affiliation: S.C. Controllo Alimenti e Igiene delle Produzioni, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Via Bologna, 148, 10154 Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Lucia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Decastelli
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sciences of Food Production, National Research Council of Italy, Via G. Amendola 122/O, 70126 Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Monaci
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sciences of Food Production, National Research Council of Italy, Via G. Amendola 122/O, 70126 Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Visconti
authors.affiliation: Institute of Sciences of Food Production, National Research Council of Italy, Via G. Amendola 122/O, 70126 Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Baruzzi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002611:Cheese / Q000032:analysis / Q000382:microbiology*; D003116:Color; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis / Q000517:prevention & control; D005519:Food Preservation / Q000379:methods*; D061353:Food Storage; D007781:Lactoferrin / Q000737:chemistry*; D010434:Pepsin A / Q000737:chemistry*; D010860:Pigments, Biological / Q000378:metabolism*; D011551:Pseudomonas fluorescens / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D010860:Pigments, Biological; D007781:Lactoferrin; D010434:Pepsin A
keywords: Antimicrobial peptides; Blue Mozzarella; Cheese shelf life; Cheese spoilage; ESI-Orbitrap-MS; Indigoidine