Antibacterial Effects of Phytic Acid against Foodborne Pathogens and Investigation of Its Mode of Action

• Published in: Journal of food protection Vol. 82; no. 5; pp. 826 - 833
• Main Authors: Zhou, Q I, Zhao, Y U, Dang, Hui, Tang, Yuanyue, Zhang, Baoshan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.05.2019
• Subjects: Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; Bacteria - drug effects; Bacterial Adhesion - drug effects; Food Microbiology; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Phytic Acid - pharmacology; Foodborne pathogens; Antimicrobial activity; Cell membrane; Ethanol; Synergistic antimicrobial; Phytic acid
• ISSN: 0362-028X; 1944-9097
• DOI: 10.4315/0362-028x.jfp-18-418

This study investigated the antimicrobial mechanism of phytic acid (PA) and its antibacterial effects in combination with ethanol. The MIC of PA on ATCC 11229, ATCC 6538P, ATCC 6633, and Typhimurium CICC 27483 were 0.24, 0.20, 0.26, and 0.28% (w/w), respectively. ATCC 11229 and ATCC 6538P were selected to investigate the mechanism of PA by analyzing its effects at 1/2MIC and at MIC on the cell morphology, intracellular ATP, and cell membrane integrity. Environmental scanning electron microscope images revealed that PA was able to change the cell morphology and disrupt the intercellular adhesion. PA retarded bacterial growth and caused cell membrane dysfunction, which was accompanied by decreased intracellular ATP concentrations. Flow cytometry analysis further revealed that almost all the bacterial cells were damaged after treatment with PA at its MIC for 2 h. Moreover, PA has a synergistic antimicrobial ability when used in combination with ethanol. These results suggested that PA is effective in inhibiting growth of foodborne pathogens mainly by the mechanism of cell membrane damage and to provide a theoretical basis for the development of natural antimicrobial agents in the food industry.