Sprouts are the leading cause of foodborne disease outbreaks globally, mainly because the specialized conditions required to germinate seed sprouts for human consumption contribute to an environment that allows pathogenic bacteria to flourish. To reduce risk of illness, current food safety guidelines in the United States and Canada recommend hypochlorite treatment for seed sanitation. However, many growers and consumers have become wary of the impact of hypochlorite on human health and the environment and are actively seeking less caustic approaches. Here, we evaluated the effects of both the traditional hypochlorite treatment and a milder alternative on nontyphoidal Salmonella enterica colonization of germinating alfalfa seed. Moreover, we explored three biological factors as potential contributors for inhibition of S. enterica growth: colonization by indigenous bacteria, seed composition changes, and seed metabolite release. In this experimental setting, we found that a combinatorial treatment of heat, peroxide, and acetic acid was as effective as hypochlorite for inhibiting S. enterica growth. Notably, we pinpointed N-acetyl-spermidine as an endogenous metabolite exuded by treated seeds that strongly inhibits S. enterica growth. In doing so, we both elucidated one of the mechanisms of chemical sanitation and highlighted a potential seed-derived mode of antimicrobial treatment that may apply to modernized food safety protocols.

中文翻译：

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经消毒的发芽苜蓿种子释放的内源性代谢产物抑制肠炎沙门氏菌的生长

发芽是全球食源性疾病暴发的主要原因，主要是因为供人类食用的发芽种子发芽所需的特殊条件有助于使致病细菌得以繁衍的环境。为了降低患病的风险，美国和加拿大目前的食品安全指南建议使用次氯酸盐处理种子卫生。但是，许多种植者和消费者已经对次氯酸盐对人类健康和环境的影响保持警惕，并积极寻求减少腐蚀性的方法。在这里，我们评估了传统次氯酸盐治疗和较温和替代方法对非伤寒肠沙门氏菌的影响发芽的苜蓿种子定植。此外，我们探索了三种生物因子作为抑制肠炎链球菌生长的潜在因素：本地细菌的定植，种子组成变化和种子代谢物释放。在此实验环境中，我们发现热，过氧化物和乙酸的组合处理与次氯酸盐一样有效地抑制了肠球菌的生长。值得注意的是，我们确定了N-乙酰基亚精胺为处理过的种子所渗出的内源性代谢产物，该产物强烈抑制肠炎链球菌。增长。在这样做的过程中，我们既阐明了化学卫生的机制之一，又强调了潜在的种子衍生的抗微生物治疗模式，该模式可能适用于现代化的食品安全规程。