Abstract
Almond pudding is a common traditional Iranian complementary food for infants after starting solid foods. Escherichia coli O157:H7 is one of the leading pathogenic microorganisms that cause serious foodborne disease in different populations including infants. The large intestine of breast-fed infants is colonized predominantly by bifidobacteria, which have a protective effect against acute diarrhea. The study objective of this research was to screen the survival characteristics of E. coli O157:H7 as well as four strains of Bifidobacterium subspecies (spp.) in almond pudding. The bacterial strains were studied after three and six hours of incubation at 37℃ in-vitro. Luria-Bertani (LB) broth was used as a basic medium for both Bifidobacterium spp. and E. coli experiments in anaerobic and aerobic conditions, respectively. The viability of Bifidobacterium spp. increased from 2.46 ± 0.2 to 6.57 ±1.3 log10 CFU/ml in low inoculum and from 4.53 ± 0.7 to 7.2 ± 0.4 in high inoculum experiments in 6 hours. However, the growth of E. coli O157:H7 from 3.12 ± 0.2 to 4.99 ± 0.1 log10 CFU/ml was significantly (P < 0.05) lower compared to Bifidobacterium spp. The results illus- trate impaired growth of E. coli O157:H7 and enhanced growth of Bifidobacterium spp. in almond pudding. The finding demonstrated that almond pudding in infant’s diet may indirectly enhance the protection against survival and growth of E. coli O157:H7 by increasing the Bifidobacterium spp. populations in infant’s gastrointestinal system.
Highlights
Foodborne outbreaks, and investigating the causes of foodborne outbreaks or diseases, have not been a high priority in developing countries because of application of basic food safety rules in buying, cooking, storage and preservation combined with pathogen resistance of exposed populations [1,2]
The growth of E. coli O157:H7 from 3.12 ± 0.2 to 4.99 ± 0.1 log10 CFU/ml was significantly (P < 0.05) lower compared to Bifidobacterium spp
New etiologies of diarrhea such as entero aggregative E. coli O157:H7 have been recognized in recent decades E. coli O157:H7 causes intestinal disorders ranging from mild diarrhea to hemorrhagic colitis and severe hemolytic uremic syndrome in infants [4,5,6,7]
Summary
Investigating the causes of foodborne outbreaks or diseases, have not been a high priority in developing countries because of application of basic food safety rules in buying, cooking, storage and preservation combined with pathogen resistance of exposed populations [1,2]. Changes in food consumption habits might affect the foodborne illness rate due to cultural effects. New etiologies of diarrhea such as entero aggregative E. coli O157:H7 have been recognized in recent decades E. coli O157:H7 causes intestinal disorders ranging from mild diarrhea to hemorrhagic colitis and severe hemolytic uremic syndrome in infants [4,5,6,7]. The predominant enterohemorrhagic E. coli serotype affecting humans in the United Kingdom and North America is E. coli O157:H7. In the US these infections have been associated primarily with contact with ruminant feces [8]
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