Development of a Food Safety Laboratory Testing the Efficacy of Using Ozone and Probiotics to Inhibit Food-borne Pathogens in Poultry and Meat

<p>NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY:<br/> The PI and Co-PI of this project proposes to develop an infrastructure for a food safety laboratory on May, 2012 for a two years in the Department of Biology and Physical Sciences. To date, there is not a cost effective and efficient method for reducing food-borne pathogens in poultry and meats. This laboratory will be used for investigating a novel approach using ozone gas, ozone water and probiotics alone, and synergistically to inhibit the growth of food-borne pathogens in poultry and meats. Students involved in this project will develop research skills on food Science which will make them competitive for graduate admission. Furthermore, the data generated from this project will assist with obtaining future funding from other governmental agency. This proposal will investigate the effects of ozone and probiotics on inhibiting food-borne
pathogens associated with poultry and meats. The two objectives are: 1) Build the infrastructure for a food safety laboratory designed to conduct investigations on the presence of food-borne pathogens in poultry and meats. 2) Develop a novel and cost effective approach to control bacterial contamination in poultry and meats, by using a number of antimicrobial treatments such as ozone, probiotics and their combination. Developing an innovative approach to address food-borne pathogens is necessary because recent U.S. estimates indicate that some 76 million illnesses and 5,000 deaths are attributed annually to food-borne illness. The annual cost for treatment is 5-6 billion per year. Campylobacter jejuni, E. coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella spp. are among the leading food-borne bacterial pathogens in the USA. Furthermore, poultry and meat products have been identified as
a major source of these organisms. The objectives of this project will be accomplished by using various concentrations of ozone, probiotics and their combination to determine the most effective method for controlling food-borne pathogens. To perform this research study, $200,000 is requested for 2 years to purchase the necessary equipment and supplies to establish a food safety laboratory. In addition, funds are needed to support the PI, Co-PI, 1 graduate student, and 2 undergraduate students. A major goal of this proposal is to establish the infrastructure for a food safety laboratory at South Carolina State University (SCSU), which is an 1890 Land Grant Institution, to strengthen the research capabilities of the students and faculty. Students involved in the project will develop research skills promoting acceptance into graduate school. Moreover, the establishment of a food safety
laboratory at SCSU will build the capacity needed to submit competitive grant applications for future funding from governmental agencies i.e., USDA.
<p>APPROACH:<br/> Raw poultry and beef meat samples will be purchased from a local retail markets in Orangeburg, SC. Ozone gas will be generated by a laboratory ozone generator using oxygen gas as a substrate. Probiotics will be purchased from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC). Samples of poultry and beef will be cut into small pieces and treated with different concentrations of O3-gas, O3-water and probiotics. The samples will be packed in customized polyethylene plastic bags with thickness. Ozone gas will be injected into the plastic bag at different rates by an ozone generator. Aqueous ozone-water will be prepared using an ozone generating system. Meat samples will be dipped into different concentrations of O3-water and probiotics for 10 min, and allowed to drain for 30 min or water will be removed by centrifugation. Aqueous ozone (O3)-water will be prepared by
using an ozone generating system. The ozone generator will be equipped with a vortexern to facilitate dissolving of gaseous ozone in the water. The concentration of dissolved ozone will be determined by an ozone measuring meter. Probiotics will be grown at 37 degrees celcius for 24 h in Luria-Bertani broth, centrifuged and different concentrations of cell suspensions (log CFU/ml) will be prepared by adding 0.1% sterile peptone water. At first, we will find out the optimum concentration of each parameter to inhibit food-borne pathogens. Finally, we will observe the synergistic effects of ozone, ozone-water and probiotics at optimum concentration on food-borne pathogens. All samples will be packed in customized airtight polyethylene plastic bags and stored at 8 degrees celcius on 15 days. Survival of these strains will be determined every 5 days. Controls will be un-inoculated samples. The
analyses for survival of these strains will be determined on days 0, 5, 10 and 15. Twenty-five grams of each sample will be aseptically placed in a sterile stomacher bag containing 50 mL of sterile 0.1% peptone water. These samples will be homogenized using a Stomacher for 3 min, filtered through a sterile cheese cloth, and diluted with peptone water (0.1% sterile peptone, w/v) for microbial count. Serial dilutions will be performed in triplicate on nutrient agar plates. All plates will be incubated at 37 degrees celcius for 24 or 48 h. Each microbial count is the mean of three determinations. Microbial counts will be expressed as log CFU/g.
<p>PROGRESS: 2013/01 TO 2013/09<br/>Target Audience: The target audience included undergraduate, graduate, and faculty researchers who attended the national conferences that the data were reported. <p>Changes/Problems:<br/> The major problem we encountered was getting the ozone generator ordered, set up, and training for functional use. Therefore, it hampered us generating data for this component of the project. To resolve this problem, the Ozone Solutions technician was contacted to construct the Ozone Generator on January 31, 2014. Furthermore, an extension proposal was submitted to 1890 Research for 2014-15 to allow the investigators an opportunity to conduct the studies using ozone and ozone water on foodborne pathogens associated with beef and poultry. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? This projected has afforded the
student and faculty researchers to present their data at the various national conferences. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? The results have been shared with communities of interest by power point and poster presentations at various national conferences in the U.S. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? The goals will be accomplished in the next reporting period by conducting experimentation using ozone and ozone water on poultry and beef.
<p>PROGRESS: 2012/01/01 TO 2012/12/31<br/>OUTPUTS: A. PROJECT GOALS 1. To establish a more effective approach for controlling the growth of food-borne pathogens in various food products; 2. To assist the USDA in eliminating the U.S. population's concern for increased risk of food-borne pathogens; 3. To disseminate information to farmers, to grocery store manager, and to the community at-large in regards to technology which may impact the presence of food-borne pathogens via seminars, presentations, workshops and classes; and 4. To develop a cadre of scientists who have an expertise in controlling/eliminating the presence of food-borne pathogens in various food products. B. PROJECT OBJECTIVES 1. To build the infrastructure for a food safety laboratory designed to conduct an investigation on the presence of food-borne pathogens in poultry and meat. 2. To develop a novel and
cost-effective approach to control bacterial contamination in poultry and meat by using a number of antimicrobial treatments such as ozone, probiotics (as a competitive exclusion), and their combination. C. EXPECTED OUTPUTS South Carolina State University (SCSU) is a Historically Black Land Grant Institution. This project proposes to establish a cost-effective, food-safety laboratory in the Department of Biology and Physical Sciences. Consequently, faculty and students will benefit from the presence of a research facility on food safety by receiving training and opportunities to be exposed to cutting-edge science. The USDA will benefit by developing a safe, cost-effective, pilot protocol for inhibiting the presence of food-borne pathogens. The society will be positively impacted by decreasing the likelihood of a consumer contracting a food-borne illness; thereby, reducing the financial
burden on the healthcare system. <p>PARTICIPANTS:<br/> PI: Dr. James B. Stukes; Co-PI: Dr. Nazimuddin Mohammed; Graduate Assistant: Richard Morgan; Students: Kayland Huckaby, Hassan Black, and Jessica Johnson TARGET AUDIENCES: Conference attendees at the USC SCAMP Conference (October 13, 2012) and the MANNRS Conference (December 2, 2012) at Tuskegee University PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.