Application of MPN-PCR in biosafety of Bacillus cereus s.l. for ready-to-eat cereals.

• Main Authors: Lee, Hai Yen, Chai, Lay Ching, Tang, Sui Yan, Selamat, Jinap, Mohammad Ghazali, Farinazleen, Radu, Son
• Format: Article
• Language: English; English; English
• Published: Elsevier 2009
• Online Access: http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/7742/1/Application%20of%20MPN.pdf; http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/7742/2/Application%20of%20MPN-PCR%20in%20biosafety%20of%20Bacillus%20cereus%20s.l.%20for%20ready-to-eat%20cereals.pdf; http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/7742/; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodcont.2009.01.009

Since Bacillus cereus is one of the important foodborne pathogens, it is interesting to investigate the biosafety of Bacillus spp. and B. cereus in ready-to-eat cereals marketed local supermarkets. For this investigation, the prevalence and enumeration of Bacillus spp. and B. cereus were assayed using MPN-PCR method. Results showed that 78% of the processed cereal products intended for direct consumption were positive for the presence of B. cereus with concentrations ranging from as low as 30 MPN/g to more than 24,000 MPN/g. The concentration obtained from this study also reflects on the differences in the contamination level between the infant food, raw cereals, cereal bars, ready-to-eat breakfast cereals and pre-mixed drinks examined. Hence, application of the MPN-PCR method was found to be useful to address the biosafety concerns of B. cereus in ready-to-eat cereals.