Determination of some chemical parameters and antimicrobial activity of traditional food: mesir paste

The antimicrobial activities and some chemical properties of the traditional Turkish food called mesir paste were studied. Results of chemical analysis for moisture and volatiles, water-insoluble components, refractive index, soluble solids content, raw fiber, invert sugar, total ash, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, acidity, and pH were calculated as 17.06%, 2.55%, 1.491, 80.2%, 0.70%, 40.54%, 0.13%, 44 mg/kg, 0.9% anhydrous citric acid, and 3.6, respectively. Mesir paste was extracted individually by six solvents with different polarity, and antimicrobial activities of each extracts were determined against 12 microbial strains, mostly food-borne, including pathogens, by the agar well diffusion method. All extracts obtained showed antimicrobial activity ranging from 8 mm to 40 mm, and the butanolic extract displayed stronger antimicrobial activity against all tested microorganisms; Gram-positive strains were found to be more sensitive than Gram-negative strains. Antimicrobial potency of n-butanol extracts of mesir paste was determined in term of minimal inhibitory concentration and minimal bactericidal concentration for the sensitive microorganisms. In addition, some commercial antibiotics such as ampicillin, gentamicin, and nystatin were used as positive controls to determine the sensitivity of the strains.