Antilisterial activity of lactic acid bacteria inoculated on cooked ham

This study was conducted to evaluate the ability of Lactobacillus sakei 1, a bacteriocin-producing (bac+) lactic acid bacterium (LAB), isolated from Brazilian fresh pork sausage to inhibit two Listeria monocytogenes strains (serotypes 4b and 1/2a) on cooked, sliced vacuum-packaged ham. L. sakei ATCC 15521 was used as a non-bacteriocin producer (bac−). L. monocytogenes (ca. 2 log CFU/mL) and LAB (ca. 6 log CFU/ml) were inoculated on the sterilized ham, vacuum-sealed and incubated at 8 °C for 10 days. A treatment with the bacteriocin Chrisin (UI/ml) was included. Both L. monocytogenes strains were significantly inhibited in the presence of either bac+ and bac− LAB in comparison to the control (L. monocytogenes alone). Using a bacteriocinogenic strain of LAB did not offer an additional barrier to listerial growth in the studied meat system. The application of Chrisin did not affect at all the growth of L. monocytogenes.