Preconditioning with cations increases the attachment of Anoxybacillus flavithermus and Geobacillus species to stainless steel
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Published on: November 16, 2012
Ben Somerton1, Steve Flint, Jon Palmer
1Institute of Food, Nutrition and Human Health, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand. ben.somerton@fonterra.com
Abstract:
Preconditioning of Anoxybacillus flavithermus E16 and Geobacillus sp. strain F75 with cations prior to attachment often significantly increased (P ≤ 0.05) the number of viable cells that attached to stainless steel (by up to 1.5 log CFU/cm(2)) compared with unconditioned bacteria. It is proposed that the transition of A. flavithermus and Geobacillus spp. from milk formulations to stainless steel product contact surfaces in milk powder manufacturing plants is mediated predominantly by bacterial physiological factors (e.g., surface-exposed adhesins) rather than the concentrations of cations in milk formulations surrounding bacteria.
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