The aim of the present work was to study the microbiota profile of gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata) fillets stored either aerobically or under Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) conditions at 0, 4, 8 and 12 °C, via 16S rRNA metabarcoding sequencing. Throughout storage, sensory assessment was also applied to estimate fillets' end of shelf-life. Results indicated that storage conditions strongly influenced the shelf-life of the fillets, since the sensorial attributes of air-stored samples deteriorated earlier than that of MAP-stored fillets, while higher temperatures also contributed to a more rapid products' end of shelf-life. Metataxonomic analysis indicated that Pseudomonas was by far the dominant genus at the end of fillet's shelf-life, in the vast majority of treatments, even though a sporadic but noteworthy presence of other genera (e.g, Shewanella, Carnobacterium, Brochothrix etc.) at the middle stages of MAP-stored fillets is also worth mentioning. On the other hand, a completely different profile as well as a more abundant bacterial diversity was observed at the end of shelf-life of MAP-stored fillets at 12 °C, in which Serratia was the most dominant bacterium, followed by Kluyvera, Hafnia, Rahnella and Raoultella, while Pseudomonas was detected in traces. The findings of the present work are very important, providing useful information about the spoilage status of gilthead seabream fillets during several storage conditions, triggering in parallel the need for further studies to enrich the current knowledge and help stakeholders develop innovative strategies that delay the growth of key spoiler players and consequently, retard spoilage course.
Keywords: Fillets; Microbiota; Next generation sequencing; Seabream; Seafood; Specific spoilage organisms; Spoilage.
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