نشریه بهداشت مواد غذایی
سال یازدهم شماره 4 (پیاپی 44، زمستان 1400)

Non-thermal methods can be used to reduce the adverse effects of conventional thermal pasteurization on food. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ultrasound method regarding the effect of the three variables of ultrasound power (10, 105, and 200 watts), ultrasound temperature (0, 30, and 60 °C), and ultrasound duration (2, 6 and 10 min) on microbial load as well as total phenol content of sour cherry juice. According to the results, the most effective treatment in preserving the quality characteristics and the highest phenol content of all sour cherry juice samples was the pasteurized treatment by ultrasonic method with 10-watt power, 0 °C, and 6 min. It was assumed that by increasing the ultrasound power from 10 to 200 watts, the ultrasound temperature from 0 to 60 °C, and the ultrasound duration from 2 to 10 min, the total microbial count and the populations of coliforms, and mold and yeast decreased significantly (p <0.05) in the pasteurized cherry juice. Ultrasound pasteurization of cherry juice at the power of 109 watts, 60 °C and 9.5 min had the best results in terms of preserving phenolic compounds and reducing microbial load. The results revealed no significant difference between the microbial load of pasteurized cherry juice with the two methods. In terms of bioactive compounds and quality properties, the optimal ultrasonic treatment was more favorable than the pasteurized sample at 90 °C for 30 seconds.

Most food outbreaks occur by food contact workers who contaminate products during preparation and handling. Workers' knowledge and practices play a major role in food safety in food establishments. This study aimed to survey the awareness of Shiraz confectionery workers about food hygiene and their practices. A cross-sectional study was performed to select confectioneries randomly. A self-made questionnaire was designed to determine the knowledge and practices of workers about food hygiene (including demographic characteristics, knowledge, 6 points), and practices, 60 points). 130 people from 27 confectioneries participated in the study. Most of the participants were male and had diploma, and with an average age of 35 years old. Data analysis showed that 39.2, 37.7, and 23.1% of workers had low, medium, and high awareness, and 0%, 7.7%, and 92.3% applicated poor, moderate, and good hygiene practices. The workers' knowledge about food hygiene was not satisfactory. However, they had good practices, generally. They did not know the protocol of cream defrosting and fruits disinfection and did not apply proper hygienic practices while defrosting frozen cream and storing raw material and pastries products. Women, the elderly, and educated and experienced workers were more aware of food hygiene (p< 0.05), but these variables did not affect their practices. Shiraz confectioneries workers have not enough knowledge about food hygiene, and their hygiene practices were incomplete. It is recommended to revise the method of food hygiene courses for the confectionery workers.

Due to the increasing need to gain knowledge about the inhibitory effects of plants, in this study, the antimicrobial effects of Carum copticum, Rosa damascene, Anethum graveolens and Cuminum cyminum essential oils on some bacteria and yeast were investigated. The essential oils were extracted using a Clevenger apparatus and their compounds were determined by gas chromatography equipped with a mass spectrometer. Also, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of the essential oils were determined and their antimicrobial properties were compared by well-diffusion method. MIC results of Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus showed that Cuminum cyminum essential oil with 50 µg/ml had the lowest bactericidal effect. The essential oils of Carum copticum, Anethum graveolens and Rosa damascene had the highest bactericidal effect with 0.78 μg/ml on the studied bacteria. In the case of Escherichia coli, the highest antimicrobial effect was shown by Carum copticum essential oil at 6.25 μg/ml. Rosa damascene essential oil, with a concentration of 3.12 μg/ml, had the highest antifungal properties on Candida albicans. In the case of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the most antifungal effect was provided by Rosa damascene and Cuminum cyminum essential oils with 0.78 μg/ml. The antibacterial effect of Carum copticum essential oil was higher than the other three essential oils. In the case of yeasts, Rosa damascene and Cuminum cyminum essential oils had the most antifungal effect. According to the results, Carum copticum essential oil in controlling bacteria and Rosa damascene essential oil in controlling studied yeasts are recommended.

The AGS cell line contains gastric cancer cells, which are among the most common cancers in the world. The DU145 cell line also includes prostate cancer cells, the second leading cause of death in men after lung cancer. This study was designed to assess the cytotoxicity of spirulina extract on AGS and DU145 cell lines. In this in vitro trial, cell lines AGS and DU145 were used. Gastric and prostate cancer cell lines were prepared and cultured from the Iranian Center for Biological and Genetic Resources. The cells were divided into treatment and control groups. The effect of spirulina extract on the treated group was determined using the MTT method. According to MTT results, Spirulina extract has anti-cancer activity and more than 50% reduction in cell density against AGS and DU145 cell lines; While it did not show any significant effect on healthy cells (P< 0.05). The results of this study indicate that Spirulina extract has a good potential to control cancer cells.

Residues of pesticides and chemical toxins in water, crops, and food, which are a direct consequence of repeated, misplaced, and over-spraying of the crop during the growing season, seriously threaten the consumers' health. Therefore, the determination of residual toxins in drinking water sources is of crucial importance. After field studies on legal and illegal pesticides used in East Azerbaijan province, sampling was performed in four phases of identified water sources. Toxins and pesticides were extracted by air-assisted liquid-liquid microextraction and assessed using GC-MS. Following optimization of extraction conditions and device conditions, pH = 7, the salt content of 0.1 g, extraction time of 5 minutes, 5 suctions and 1,2,1,1-tetrachloroethane as the extraction solvent were selected as the optimal parameters. Under optimal conditions, a calibration diagram was drawn for the identified and extracted toxins. Malathion, diazinon, fenpropathrin, atrazine, and chlorpyrifos was traced in Tabriz water sources.

Endophytes are fungi, bacteria, or yeast symbionts that live in the intercellular spaces or vascular tissues of host plants. The Echinophora platyloba endophytes with production of seondray metabolites and compunend has antifungal and antibacterial properties and prolnages the shelf-time food. The present study was designed to isolate and evaluate the effects of Echinophora platyloba bacterial endophytes and their antifungal and antibacterial properties on Streptococcus agalactiae and Cryptococcus neoformans. Plant components were randomly collected from Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, Iran, and then cleaned and sterilized. Bacterial endophytes were isolated after culturing plant components in YEA and PA media and the antimicrobial properties of endophytes were investigated by studying structural factors (by chloroform) as well as endophyte metabolites. A total of 12 bacterial endophytes were isolated from different parts of leaves, stems and roots of Echinophora platyloba and showed favorable inhibitory effects on Streptococcus agalactiae and Cryptococcus neoformans. In general, secretory metabolites derived from bacterial endophytes showed stronger inhibitory effects than structural factors against these pathogens. The results of this study indicate the efficacy and potential of Echinophora platyloba bacterial endophytes in inhibiting human pathogens.