Diversity and guaiacol production of Alicyclobacillus spp. from fruit juice and fruit-based beverages

Thi Song Van Luong; Catherine J Moir; Mandeep Kaur; Damian Frank; John P Bowman; Mark I Bradbury

doi:10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2019.108314

Diversity and guaiacol production of Alicyclobacillus spp. from fruit juice and fruit-based beverages

Int J Food Microbiol. 2019 Dec 2:311:108314. doi: 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2019.108314. Epub 2019 Aug 24.

Authors

Thi Song Van Luong¹, Catherine J Moir², Mandeep Kaur³, Damian Frank², John P Bowman⁴, Mark I Bradbury⁵

Affiliations

¹ CSIRO Agriculture and Food, North Ryde 2113, New South Wales, Australia; Centre for Food Safety and Innovation, Tasmanian Agriculture Institute, University of Tasmania, Hobart 2005, Tasmania, Australia.
² CSIRO Agriculture and Food, North Ryde 2113, New South Wales, Australia.
³ Centre for Food Safety and Innovation, Tasmanian Agriculture Institute, University of Tasmania, Hobart 2005, Tasmania, Australia; Biosciences and Food Technology, School of Science, RMIT University, Melbourne 3000, Victoria, Australia.
⁴ Centre for Food Safety and Innovation, Tasmanian Agriculture Institute, University of Tasmania, Hobart 2005, Tasmania, Australia.
⁵ The University of Sydney, Sydney Institute of Agriculture, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Sydney 2006, New South Wales, Australia. Electronic address: mark.bradbury@sydney.edu.au.

PMID: 31522091
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2019.108314

Abstract

Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris is an acido-thermophilic, spore-forming bacterial species that can spoil acidic fruit juice and fruit-based beverages. The metabolism of taint compounds by this bacterial species has led to its status as a targeted microorganism in the fruit juice industry. This study aims to assess the genetic diversity of Alicyclobacillus spp. including A. acidoterrestris and its correlation to spoilage taint metabolism. Alicyclobacillus cultures, which were previously isolated from a wide range of domestic and international products including fruit juice, fruit drinks and fruit juice concentrates, were subjected to DNA fingerprint analysis by using randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) - polymerase chain reaction. Isolates were classified on the basis of their RAPD profile and the results were used to select representative strains to undergo taint production assessment. The taint guaiacol produced by Alicyclobacillus spp. was measured by headspace gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. From produced RAPD profiles, two genotypic groups and two sub-groups were identified. The groups were independent of product types and geographical origins. A significant number of isolates were clustered in genotypic group I, including A. acidoterrestris ATCC 49025. These isolates produced significant levels of guaiacol, 8.7 mg/L on average. A smaller number of isolates was found in genotypic group II including A. acidocaldarius and they produced no guaiacol. Primer F-64 was useful to identify Alicyclobacillus at the species level, and permitted rapid identification of strains producing fruit juice taint compounds such as guaiacol.

Keywords: Acidic food stability; Bacterial spores; Guaiacol; RAPD-PCR; Spoilage microorganisms.

MeSH terms

Alicyclobacillus / genetics*
Alicyclobacillus / isolation & purification
Alicyclobacillus / metabolism*
DNA Fingerprinting
Fruit / metabolism*
Fruit and Vegetable Juices / microbiology*
Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry
Genotype
Guaiacol / metabolism*
Polymerase Chain Reaction
Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA Technique

Substances

Guaiacol

Supplementary concepts

Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris