Investigation of the molecular basis of variation in thermal and organic acid inactivation of Salmonella enterica (KINGSLEY_Q18CASEN)

本项目的目的是研究温和热处理联合灭活沙门氏菌的分子基础，并建议关键限度，以确保病原体灭活和产品安全。我们将检验中心假设，即病原体菌株的遗传变异会导致失活的差异，特别是在温和的加热条件下，因此会对食品安全和消费者健康造成相关风险。这项研究的基本原理是，在病原体菌株生理反应变化的科学知识方面存在空白。科学的病原体灭活数据对食品生产至关重要，确保食品安全，了解这种表型变异的遗传基础将有助于合理选择目标菌株进行工艺验证和改进加工，并进行更可靠的风险评估。目前，热处理的选择依赖于缺乏数据和明确相关性的试验菌株。这一假设是基于初步数据，这些数据表明，即使是在密切相关的沙门氏菌变体中，对加工压力的反应也存在相当大的差异。该项目的价值在于，科学数据将转化为消费者、监管机构和行业的建议，以确保时尚植物蛋白产品的安全供应和消费。

The aim of this project is to investigate the molecular basis for the inactivation of Salmonella by combinations of mild thermal treatments and recommend critical limits to ensure pathogen inactivation and product safety. We will test the central hypothesis that genetic variation of pathogen strains results in differences in inactivation, especially at mild heating conditions, and therefore the associated risk to food safety and consumer health. The rationale for the study is that there is a gap in the scientific knowledge of the variation of physiological responses in pathogen strains. Scientific pathogen inactivation data are crucial in food production to ensure food safety, and an understanding of the genetic basis of this phenotypic variation will result in a rational selection of target strains for process validations and improved processing, and more reliable risk assessments. At present the selection of thermal treatments rely on test strains for which data and clear relevance are missing. The hypothesis is based on preliminary data indicating considerable variation in response to processing stresses, even in closely related Salmonella variants. The project value is that scientific data that will be translated into recommendations for consumers, regulators and industry to ensure safe supply and consumption of trendy plant protein products.