Inactivation of Escherichia coli phage by pulsed electric field treatment and analysis of inactivation mechanism

Abstract

Inactivation of bacteriophage by pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment, one of the effective procedures for bacteria nonthermal inactivation, was studied. Model phage particles Escherichia coli bacteriophages M13mp18 and λ phage, were successfully inactivated by PEF treatment. The survival ratios of both bacteriophages decreased depending on the PEF treatment time when applied peak voltage was 5 or 7 kV, and the survival ratios after 12 min PEF treatment were 10−4 – 10−5. Electrophoresis analyses of biological molecules of inactivated λ phage detected no degradation of total protein and genomic DNA. These results suggested that the factor of phage inactivation by PEF treatment was not based on the degradation of protein or DNA, but on the destruction of phage particle structure. Sensitivity of E. coli phage to PEF treatment was compared with that of E. coli cell. Phage and MV1184 cell were treated with same condition PEF at 5 kV, respectively. After 12 min treatment, the survival ration of λ phage and MV1184 were 4.0 × 10−5 and 1.7 × 10−3, respectively. The survival ratio of phage was lower than that of MV1184. E. coli cell is more tolerant to inactivation with PEF treatment than coli phage.