FOOD SCIENCE ›› 2021, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (21): 235-245.doi: 10.7506/spkx1002-6630-20201008-039

• Reviews • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Progress in Research on Molecular Mechanisms of Decontamination Technologies Applied in Critical Control Points for the Microbiological Safety of Chilled Meat

YANG Jun, LUO Xin, LIANG Rongrong, ZHU Lixian, HAN Mingshan, YANG Xiaoyin, ZHANG Yimin   

  1. (1. College of Food Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an 271018, China; 2. National Beef Cattle Industrial Technology System, Tongliao Station, Tongliao 028100, China)
  • Online:2021-11-15 Published:2021-11-23

Abstract: Meat industries use many decontamination technologies to improve the safety and storability of chilled meat during the production and circulation process. Spraying organic acids on carcasses, disinfection with electrolyzed water, and modified atmosphere packaging are commonly used as hurdle factors in the three critical control points for the microbiological safety of chilled meat, namely, slaughtering, carcass segmentation, and storage and distribution, respectively. At present, understanding the molecular mechanisms behind various decontamination technologies using omics approaches has become a research focus. However, there have been few systematic reviews of the molecular mechanisms behind and the associations among various decontamination technologies in recent years. Therefore, this review summarizes the effects of the above three decontamination technologies on physiological and biochemical responses of common pathogenic bacteria (e.g., Listeria monocytogenes and Escherichia coli O157:H7) and spoilage bacteria (e.g., Pseudomonas, Brochothrix thermosphacta and lactic acid bacteria) based on their protein expression and metabolic regulation. It has been found that although the decontamination technologies can influence bacterial intracellular protein expression and metabolic pathways, they work mainly by destroying the cell wall, membrane and flagellum or damaging their structural proteins and other components, and interfering with carbohydrate metabolism pathways such as glycolysis, the pentose phosphate pathway and the tricarboxylic acid cycle and amino acid metabolism pathways such as valine and leucine. This manuscript also reviews the influence of stress resistance in some specific bacteria induced by self-regulation of stress response on the efficiency of the decontamination technologies. This review may provide a theoretical guidance for meat industries to conduct the targeted control of bacterial contamination for improved preservation of chilled meat during the whole processing chain.

Key words: chilled meat; organic acid; electrolyzed water; modified atmosphere packaging; microbial contamination mechanism

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