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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania » Eastern Regional Research Center » Microbial and Chemical Food Safety » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #280442
Title: Antimicrobial activity of allyl isothiocyanate used to coat biodegradable composite films as affected by storage and handling conditions

Author
item LI, WEILI - Tianjin University Of Science And Technology
item Jin, Zhonglin
item Liu, Linshu

Submitted to: Journal of Food Protection
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/11/2012
Publication Date: 12/1/2012
Citation: Li, W., Jin, Z.T., Liu, L.S. 2012. Antimicrobial activity of allyl isothiocyanate used to coat biodegradable composite films as affected by storage and handling conditions. Journal of Food Protection. 75(12):2234-2237.

Interpretive Summary: There are public concerns over food safety and environmental pollution. This research was to develop antimicrobial and biodegradable packaging materials used for food packaging while not impact environment. Ally isothiocyanate (AIT) was incorporated into polylactic acid or chitosan biopolymers. The release of AIT effectively inhibited the growth of pathogenic Salmonella. The antimicrobial activity of AIT was not affected by simulated storage and handling conditions. The developed antimicrobial films have poetical applications in food packaging.

Technical Abstract: We evaluated the effects of storage and handling conditions on the antimicrobial activity of biodegradable composite films (polylactic acid and sugar beet pulp) coated with allyl isothiocyanate (AIT). Polylactic acid (PLA) and chitosan were incorporated with AIT and coated on one side of the film. The films were treated at different storage conditions (storage time, storage temperature, and atmosphere) and handling conditions (washing, abrasion, and air blowing), and the antimicrobial activity of the films against Salmonella in tryptic soy broth was determined. The films (8.16 uL AIT/ cm2 surface area) significantly (p less than 0.05) inhibited the growth of Salmonella during 24 h incubation at 22C while the populations of Salmonella in controls increased from ca. 4 log CFU/ml to over 8 log CFU/ml, indicating a minimum 4 log CFU/ml reduction as compared with controls. Statistical analyses indicated that storage time, storage temperature, and surface abrasion affected antimicrobial activity of the films significantly (p less than 0.05). However, the difference in microbial reduction between these conditions was less than 0.5 log cycles. Results suggest that the films’ antimicrobial properties are stable under practical storage and handling conditions and these antimicrobial films have potential applications in food packaging.