Use of Oxyrase® enzyme to enhance recovery of Escherichia coli O157:H7 from culture media and ground beef

Escherichia coli O157:H7 is a bacterium that has caused great concern in the meat and food industry during the last few years because of several, well-publicized, disease outbreaks, including the incident at the Jackin- the-Box fast food chain in Seattle, Washington. The organism can cause severe sickness and even death in certain population groups. To better assure meat safety, federal meat inspection is focusing on developing rapid methods to detect this disease agent and others. Oxyrase is a commercially available enzyme that can accelerate the growth of some bacteria. Current techniques for isolation and culturing of E. coli O157:H7 from foods require an enrichment period of 18 to 24 hours, thus limiting their usefulness for perishable foods that are marketed quickly. Our investigation found that Oxyrase shortened required enrichment periods in broth culture only. The enzyme was less effective in sterilized ground beef

Needle-free injection enhancement of beef improves tenderness but slightly increases microbial translocation

Blade tenderization has been used for decades to increase tenderness in beef cuts that are highly variable in tenderness or predicted to be “tough.” Injection enhancement also is commonly used in industry to increase tenderness, juiciness, and flavor of some beef muscles. These processes have the potential to translocate microbial organisms on the exterior to interior portions of whole muscles. One research study reported that 3 to 4% of surface bacteria are transferred into the interior of muscles but only penetrate an average of ¼ inch deep into the surface. Even though the frequency of subprimal surfaces being contaminated with pathogens is low, translocation of these contaminants into the interior of subprimals by tenderization or injection procedures poses a public health risk. Microbial contamination on beef surfaces generally is eliminated during typical cooking; however, given the low infectious doses of pathogens such as Escherichia coli O157:H7, internalized contamination may survive if adequate temperatures are not reached at the center of cuts (i.e., rare and medium rare endpoints) and lead to illness. Industry groups have developed a guide, Best Practices: Pathogen Control During Tenderizing/Enhancing of Whole Muscle Cuts to minimize any hazard that may be present with such technologies. Although needle injection enhancement currently is common in beef processing, there may be alternative, safer, or more effective means to apply these technologies. One potential method involves utilizing an air-pressured needle-free injection system similar to an instrument currently being investigated for use in vaccinating cattle. In theory, eliminating the need for physical penetration of the muscle with a needle-free instrument using air-pressure fluid streams would reduce the translocation of surface microbial contamination to the interior and would additionally minimize carryover contamination from subprimal to subprimal during continuous injection operations. Therefore, we investigated use of needle-free injection enhancement as an alternative strategy to needle injection enhancement. Our objectives were to determine the safety and efficacy of using needle-free injection for enhancing beef muscles and the application of needle-free injection enhancement for improving beef quality

Microbial flora of commercially produced vacuum packaged, cooked beef roast

Commercially produced vacuum packaged, fully cooked, microwaveable beef roasts from four producers were purchased from local retail markets. Salt concentration, pH, water activity (aw), and percent moisture, fat and protein were determined. Samples of both package juice and homogenized beef plus juice were analyzed for the presence of aerobic, anaerobic and lactic acid bacteria and clostridia-type organisms. The cooked beef products had pH values from 5.82 to 6.19, water activity of 0.992 to 0.997, and contained 0.34 to 1.07% salt, 61.89 to 72.39% moisture, 4.29 to 18.21% fat and 15.92 to 20.62% protein. No growth was detected in juice for aerobic, anaerobic or lactic acid bacteria or clostridia-type organisms. Combined beef and juice had less than 2 CFU/g for aerobic, anaerobic or lactic acid bacteria or clostridia-type organisms. Cooking and chilling schedules used in the manufacture of the four products we evaluated in this study limited survival and outgrowth of microorganisms

Current and prospective pharmacological targets in relation to antimigraine action

Migraine is a recurrent incapacitating neurovascular disorder characterized by unilateral and throbbing headaches associated with photophobia, phonophobia, nausea, and vomiting. Current specific drugs used in the acute treatment of migraine interact with vascular receptors, a fact that has raised concerns about their cardiovascular safety. In the past, α-adrenoceptor agonists (ergotamine, dihydroergotamine, isometheptene) were used. The last two decades have witnessed the advent of 5-HT1B/1D receptor agonists (sumatriptan and second-generation triptans), which have a well-established efficacy in the acute treatment of migraine. Moreover, current prophylactic treatments of migraine include 5-HT2 receptor antagonists, Ca2+ channel blockers, and β-adrenoceptor antagonists. Despite the progress in migraine research and in view of its complex etiology, this disease still remains underdiagnosed, and available therapies are underused. In this review, we have discussed pharmacological targets in migraine, with special emphasis on compounds acting on 5-HT (5-HT1-7), adrenergic (α1, α2, and β), calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP 1 and CGRP2), adenosine (A1, A2, and A3), glutamate (NMDA, AMPA, kainate, and metabotropic), dopamine, endothelin, and female hormone (estrogen and progesterone) receptors. In addition, we have considered some other targets, including gamma-aminobutyric acid, angiotensin, bradykinin, histamine, and ionotropic receptors, in relation to antimigraine therapy. Finally, the cardiovascular safety of current and prospective antimigraine therapies is touched upon

Electrostatic spray cabinet evaluation to verify uniform delivery of chemical and biological solutions to pre-chilled meat animal carcasses

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are a group of bacteria that cause an estimated 265,000 illnesses, 3,600 hospitalizations, and 30 deaths annually in the United States. STEC are frequently associated with raw or undercooked meat products, prompting the beef industry to develop and apply various antimicrobial intervention technologies during processing operations. The application of chemical antimicrobials to carcasses and fabricated cuts using an electrostatic spray (ESS) system (Figure 1) offers several potential advantages for controlling disease-causing pathogens, including enhanced chemical deposition (coverage) profiles, reduced overspray wastage of foodgrade antimicrobials, and reduced water requirements. The objectives of this study were to (1) calibrate an ESS carcass cabinet installed at the Kansas State University Biosecurity Research Institute, (2) test the chemical deposition profile of the ESS cabinet onto a meat carcass using fluorescent dye, and (3) determine if the ESS could be used to uniformly apply a biological inoculum to a carcass to support pathogen-inoculated validation studies of different chemical intervention technologies to support the needs of the beef processing industry

Survey of cooking practices and methods for beef steaks and roasts

To support the development of Good Manufacturing Practices for the use of mechanical tenderization in the meat processing industry, a questionnaire was distributed to home, retail, and institutional preparers of beef steaks and roasts. Five hundred individuals in the United States were surveyed on their cooking practices and methods for preparing steaks and roasts. The survey was circulated to individuals from seven states, and consisted of nine questions that addressed where and how participants cooked steaks and roasts. Survey participants were directed to answer all questions that pertained to them and their methods for cooking of steaks and roasts. Results indicated that most participants used color as an indicator of doneness of steaks, whereas cooking time was most often used to indicate doneness of roasts. None of those who were surveyed knew the recommended minimum internal temperature (145°F) for cooking steaks or roasts

Needle-free injection enhancement of beef strip loins with phosphate and salt has potential to improve yield, tenderness, and juiciness but harm texture and flavor

Meat tenderness is the most important palatability attribute affecting consumers’ overall eating experience. Injection enhancement and blade tenderization have long been used to improve this important trait. Injection enhancement has been shown to improve tenderness, juiciness, color stability, and cooking yield, but not all solutions have been adequately evaluated. Thus, there is a need to conduct research on the effectiveness of common enhancement solutions. We published results from an extensive study comparing a solution of phosphate, salt, and rosemary with a solution of calcium lactate and rosemary injected by using traditional needle injection. There were no differences in Warner-Bratzler shear force values between treatments, but trained panelists scored steaks enhanced with calcium lactate and rosemary to be less tender and juicy than steaks enhanced with phosphate, salt, and rosemary. However, steaks enhanced with the phosphate solution had a higher incidence of metallic and salty off-flavors, a darker initial color, and more color deterioration. Because needle-free injection enhancement is relatively similar to traditional needle-injection enhancement with regard to food safety, it should be evaluated for its effects on meat color, instrumental tenderness, sensory traits, and yields. Objectives of this research were to determine the effects of injection method (needlefree vs. needle injection) and solution (calcium lactate vs. phosphate solution) on meat color, instrumental tenderness, sensory traits, pump yield, and cooking loss of beef Longissimus lumborum muscles

Attachment of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli (STEC) to Pre-Chill and Post-Chill Beef Brisket Tissue

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) has caused numerous foodborne illness outbreaks where beef was implicated as the contaminated food source. Understanding how STEC attach to beef surfaces may inform effective intervention applications at the abattoir. This simulated meat processing conditions to measure STEC attachment to adipose and lean beef tissue. Beef brisket samples were warmed to a surface temperature of 30 °C (warm carcass), while the remaining samples were maintained at 4 °C (cold carcass), prior to surface inoculation with an STEC cocktail (O26, O45, O103, O111, O121, O145, and O157:H7). Cocktails were grown in either tryptic soy broth (TSB) or M9 minimal nutrient medium. Loosely and firmly attached cells were measured at 0, 3, 5, and 20 min and 1, 3, 8, 12, 24 and 48 h. TSB-grown STEC cells became more firmly attached throughout storage and a difference in loosely versus firmly attached populations on lean and adipose tissues was observed. M9-grown STEC demonstrated a 0.2 log10 CFU/cm2 difference in attachment to lean versus adipose tissue and variability in populations was recorded throughout sampling. Future research should investigate whether a decrease in intervention efficacy correlates to an increase in firmly attached STEC cells on chilled carcasses and/or subprimals, which has been reported

Attachment of Shiga Toxin-Producing <i>Escherichia coli</i> (STEC) to Pre-Chill and Post-Chill Beef Brisket Tissue

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) has caused numerous foodborne illness outbreaks where beef was implicated as the contaminated food source. Understanding how STEC attach to beef surfaces may inform effective intervention applications at the abattoir. This simulated meat processing conditions to measure STEC attachment to adipose and lean beef tissue. Beef brisket samples were warmed to a surface temperature of 30 °C (warm carcass), while the remaining samples were maintained at 4 °C (cold carcass), prior to surface inoculation with an STEC cocktail (O26, O45, O103, O111, O121, O145, and O157:H7). Cocktails were grown in either tryptic soy broth (TSB) or M9 minimal nutrient medium. Loosely and firmly attached cells were measured at 0, 3, 5, and 20 min and 1, 3, 8, 12, 24 and 48 h. TSB-grown STEC cells became more firmly attached throughout storage and a difference in loosely versus firmly attached populations on lean and adipose tissues was observed. M9-grown STEC demonstrated a 0.2 log10 CFU/cm2 difference in attachment to lean versus adipose tissue and variability in populations was recorded throughout sampling. Future research should investigate whether a decrease in intervention efficacy correlates to an increase in firmly attached STEC cells on chilled carcasses and/or subprimals, which has been reported

Process intervention to assure sanitation of beef carcasses and cuts

The meat industry and Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) strive to minimize carcass contamination during slaughter and subsequent processing. Because microbial contamination during slaughter cannot be avoided completely, decontamination methods must be addressed. This overview emphasizes process intervention studies conducted at Kansas State University to determine the most effective intervention points and technologies to control microbiological hazards in meat and meat products. Our research shows that trimming of gross contamination followed by washing is a reasonable approach to minimizing microbial contamination on beef carcasses. We also found that sanitation of subprimal cuts may be just as effective as treating the carcass