Using Essential Oils to Reduce Yersinia enterocolitica in Minced Meat and in Biofilms

• Published in: Foods Vol. 13; no. 5; p. 806
• Main Authors: Vidaković Knežević, Suzana, Knežević, Slobodan, Vranešević, Jelena, Milanov, Dubravka, Ružić, Zoran, Karabasil, Nedjeljko, Kocić-Tanackov, Sunčica
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 06-03-2024; MDPI
• Subjects: anti-Yersinia activity; Antibacterial activity; Antimicrobial agents; Asymptomatic; Biofilms; Cinnamon; cinnamon essential oil; Cytology; Essential oils; Food contamination & poisoning; Foodborne diseases; Meat; Minced meat; minced pork meat; Minimum inhibitory concentration; Nutrient concentrations; Oils & fats; Oregano; oregano essential oil; Pathogens; Pork; Rosemary; Rosmarinus; Salmonella; Satureja montana; Scanning electron microscopy; Strains (organisms); Thyme; thyme essential oil; Yersinia enterocolitica; Yersiniosis; United Kingdom > UK; Serbia; France; India; Yersinia enterocolitica; minced pork meat; biofilm; cinnamon essential oil; anti-Yersinia activity; oregano essential oil; thyme essential oil; antibiofilm activity
• ISSN: 2304-8158; 2304-8158
• DOI: 10.3390/foods13050806

Yersiniosis, one of the leading foodborne infections in the European Union, is caused by
In this study, the antibacterial and antibiofilm effects of cinnamon (
Nees), clove (
L.), oregano (
L.), rosemary (
L.), thyme (
L.), and winter savory (
L.) essential oils were investigated against
strains belonging to the bioserotype 4/O:3. Cinnamon essential oil showed the highest antibacterial activity, with an MIC value 0.09 µL/mL, followed by oregano and thyme essential oils, with MIC values from 0.09 to 0.18 µL/mL, and from 0.18 to 0.23 µL/mL, respectively. Thyme essential oil at 0.23 µL/g (MIC) and at 0.46 µL/g (2MIC) significantly (
< 0.05) reduced the number of
by 0.38 log CFU/g and 0.64 log CFU/g, respectively, in minced pork meat during storage at 4 °C for 4 days. The
strains formed biofilms at 15 °C and 37 °C in tryptic soy broth and Luria-Bertani broth, while no biofilms were obtained at 5 °C, and in meat broth nutrient media. Applying the minimum bactericidal concentrations of cinnamon, clove, oregano, rosemary, thyme, and winter savory essential oils on preformed biofilms led to significant reductions being observed in the range from 45.34% to 78.89%. A scanning electron microscopy assay showed the devastating impact of oregano and thyme essential oils on the morphology of
bacterial cells. In conclusion, the results of this study show that essential oils possess high anti-
and antibiofilm effects.