Bioactive amines and microbiological quality in pasteurized and refrigerated liquid whole egg

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the correlation between the levels of bioactive amines and the microbiological quality of liquid pasteurized egg stored under refrigeration. Pasteurized whole egg liquid was obtained from 2 types of different raw materials, fresh eggs, and commercial fertile eggs. They were stored under refrigeration over a period of 21 d. The treatments were arranged in a completely randomized split plot, with the plots being the 2 types of liquid pasteurized egg, and the subplots being the 4 storage periods (1, 7, 14, and 21 d). The storage period did not contribute to the increase (P > 0.05) of contamination by mesophilic aerobic microorganisms and total coliforms in commercial liquid pasteurized egg. However, for fertile eggs, the storage period led to an increase (P < 0.05) in the numbers of microorganisms. Levels of the amines putrescine, cadaverine, and tyramine were detected only in fertile liquid pasteurized egg, and the storage period contributed to the increase (P < 0.05) in the levels of these amines. There was a high correlation between total coliform most probable number and cadaverine levels, and a moderate correlation between the numbers of aerobic mesophilic microorganisms and tyramine levels. It was concluded that the most contaminated liquid pasteurized eggs were the fertile liquid pasteurized eggs and this caused the highest levels of bioactive amines in them compared with all the eggs that had been subjected to pasteurization and refrigerated storage.