Oct 2026· Food Research International· Vol 242 Pt 5, pp.
120236
· 0 citations· 62 references
Medicine
Abstract
Photodynamic inactivation (PDI) offers a green, non-thermal and sustainable strategy for controlling foodborne pathogens and spoilage microorganisms in animal-derived foods, and natural products are increasingly being explored as photosensitizers. Here, we identify the previously underexplored photodynamic antibacterial activity of the natural alkaloid cepharanthine (CEP). SOSG fluorescence increased 6.88-fold after 10 min of irradiation, suggesting that CEP-mediated bacterial inactivation was predominantly associated with 1O2. Viable-count assays showed that CEP completely inactivated Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa within 40 and 60 min, respectively. Its PDI activity was retained in 10% reconstituted milk without significant changes in pH or lipid oxidation. Incorporation of CEP into gelatin (Gel) films improved ultraviolet shielding, water-vapour barrier properties and mechanical strength. When applied to pork at 4 °C, CEP-Gel films markedly suppressed microbial growth, limiting total viable counts to 4.65 log CFU/g on day 12 compared with 7.50 log CFU/g in the control group. The films also delayed increases in pH, TVB-N, TBARS and weight loss. CEP-Gel significantly delayed microbial growth, lipid oxidation and protein degradation during the 12-day refrigerated storage period. Overall, this study expands the functional scope of CEP and establishes a promising strategy for the sustainable preservation of animal-derived foods.
Photodynamic inactivation (PDI) is a promising nonthermal approach for food decontamination, but its translation from laboratory demonstration to industrial use remains constrained by photosensitizer chemistry, matrix optics, oxygen availability, and regulatory uncertainty. This review critically evaluates three food-relevant natural photosensitizer classes, curcumin, riboflavin, and chlorophyll derivatives, and compares their mechanisms, formulation needs, and application outcomes across produce, beverages, seafood, meat, dairy, and packaging systems. The reported efficacy is strongly matrix-dependent: reductions approaching 3-6 log CFU occur mainly in optically favorable, well-controlled systems, whereas opaque, turbid, protein-rich, lipid-rich, or geometrically complex foods commonly show lower and less reproducible inactivation. Sensory and nutritional quality must therefore be assessed together with microbial outcomes rather than assumed to be preserved. Nanoencapsulation, molecular complexation, and active packaging improve dispersibility, localization, and photostability, but they do not remove the fundamental light-penetration limit that confines PDI largely to surface, near-surface, or thin-layer applications. The review identifies standardized photodose reporting, matrix-stratified efficacy benchmarking, pilot-scale validation, residue and photoproduct assessment, and regulatory alignment as the most urgent priorities. Overall, the natural photosensitizer PDI should be positioned not as a universal substitute for established hurdles but as a precision, matrix-matched decontamination tool within integrated preservation systems.
Tao Yang, Yiyi Cheng, Ru Song et al.· Comprehensive Reviews in Foo...· 0 citations
The growing demand for natural, sustainable food preservation strategies has intensified research into plant-derived antimicrobial proteins with multifunctional bioactivities. This study reports the functional characterisation of TdGASA2, a cysteine-rich protein of the Snakin/GASA family isolated from Triticum turgidum ssp. durum, as a candidate bioactive ingredient for antimicrobial food packaging. TdGASA2 displayed broad-spectrum antibacterial activity against all tested strains, with the lowest minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values observed against Listeria monocytogenes and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (10.50 and 11.25 μg/mL, respectively), and retained a mean of 77.8% of its native antibacterial potency after autoclaving (121 °C, 20 min), reflecting the thermal resilience of its disulfide-stabilised Snakin/GASA scaffold. The protein additionally exhibited concentration-dependent α-amylase inhibition (IC₅₀ = 72.4 ± 0.31 μg/mL) and enhanced bactericidal inactivation of L. monocytogenes under oxidative stress. Incorporation of TdGASA2 into chitosan-based films improved tensile strength and reduced water vapor permeability and water solubility, consistent with protein-polysaccharide interactions inferred from established structure-property relationships in the literature; the films also maintained a high rate of soil-burial mass loss and macro-disintegration (>92% after 10 days), which reflects overall gravimetric mass reduction rather than confirmed biodegradation in the absence of an abiotic soil control. In a 10-day refrigerated chicken breast storage trial, TdGASA2-enriched films (2× MIC against L. monocytogenes) reduced total aerobic microbial growth by approximately 2.4 log CFU/g and attenuated lipid and protein oxidation relative to the unfunctionalised control, corresponding to an exploratory, Random Forest-predicted shelf-life extension of 3-4 days. Collectively, these results identify TdGASA2 as a promising, multifunctional bioactive candidate for biodegradable active food packaging; direct spectroscopic confirmation of the proposed protein-polymer interactions, migration behaviour in regulatory food simulants, toxicological and allergenicity profiling, sensory impact, and formal food-contact regulatory assessment remain to be established before its suitability for practical or commercial application can be confirmed.
Boutheina Ben Akacha, Anis Ben Hsouna, N. Baazaoui et al.· International Journal of Bio...· 0 citations
Green pretreatments that improve oil recovery while maintaining oil quality are of interest for camellia seed processing. This study compared three separate photodynamic inactivation (PDI) pretreatments, using emodin, resveratrol, or coumarin as the photosensitizer under LED blue light, and evaluated their effects on camellia seeds and the oil obtained after pressing. PDI significantly reduced surface microbial loads, with bacterial and fungal counts decreasing by 0.99-1.31 and 1.04-1.87 log CFU/g, respectively (p < 0.05). It also altered seed microstructure and moisture distribution, increased oil yield by 21.4-43%, maintained the fatty acid profile, and enhanced α-tocopherol by 6.4-12.7%. Emodin and coumarin showed stronger antimicrobial and quality-preserving effects than resveratrol. These results indicate that natural photosensitizer-mediated PDI is a promising pretreatment for improving oil recovery and preserving camellia seed oil quality.
Effective washing of fruits is crucial for safety and quality, especially because of microbial contamination. This study investigates the effects of varying concentrations (0, 40, and 80 ppm) and contact period (60 s and 120 s) of SaniDate®, a hydrogen peroxide-peracetic acid antimicrobial solution, on the reduction of Listeria innocua, yeast, mold, and native microbial populations on blueberries and in washing water. Additionally, the effect of these treatments on blueberry physicochemical properties was assessed by measuring the percentage water loss and visible damage over time. Initial L. innocua load of 8 log colony-forming units (CFU)/mL was significantly reduced by more than 4 logs CFU/mL with 80-ppm SaniDate (P < 0.05), with similar efficacy at 60 s and 120 s. A comparable trend was observed for native bacteria. In contrast, longer exposure to water without antimicrobial solution increased microbial survival, indicating the potential for cross-contamination. Yeast and mold reduction was considerably greater in SaniDate-treated samples compared to controls, although not significantly affected by concentration or contact time. All treatments caused negligible water loss and minimal surface injury, except at 80 ppm for 120 s (P < 0.05). Overall, SaniDate treatment, particularly at 80 ppm for 60 s, demonstrated potential as an effective approach for microbial control on blueberries while maintaining product quality.
Minji Kim, Mariana de Oliveira Corte, M. Moore et al.· Quality Assurance and Safety...· 0 citations
Severe air pollution and pathogenic aerosol transmission pose critical threats to human health, necessitating the development of sustainable, multifunctional filtration materials beyond traditional non-wovens. Herein, a fully bio-based, multifunctional nanofibrous membrane is engineered by integrating the natural antibacterial agent myricetin (Myr) into a poly(trimethylene 2,5-furandicarboxylate) (PTF) matrix by way of electrospinning. The incorporation of Myr modulates the solution viscosity and conductivity, refining the fiber diameter to form a robust, ultra-fine three-dimensional porous architecture (PTF@Myr). This optimized structure balances filtration efficiency and air permeability, achieving a 99.30% capture efficiency for PM0.3 at a low pressure drop of 83 Pa. Synergistically, the membrane exhibits potent biological activity, delivering sterilization rates of 99.85% against Escherichia coli and 99.99% against Staphylococcus aureus by disrupting bacterial cell walls. Furthermore, the enhanced hydrophobicity and lipophilicity of the membrane enable exceptional oil–water separation performance, characterized by a high permeation flux of 3706 l·m−2·h−1, a separation efficiency of 99.60%, and excellent cyclic stability. This work establishes a facile, green strategy for fabricating degradable, high-performance barriers, offering a promising paradigm for next-generation environmental purification and personal protection applications.
Yueshi Lei, Jialiang Geng, Xingxue Bai et al.· Green Materials· 0 citations
Biogenic hydrogen sulfide produced in sewer systems causes odor nuisance and concrete corrosion, necessitating effective biocidal control. Free nitrous acid (FNA) has emerged as a promising biocide, but its unclear mechanisms complicate dosage optimization and risk assessment. Here, using Desulfovibrio vulgaris as a model lysogenic bacterium, we demonstrate that low-dose FNA (0.2–4.0 mg N/L) induces bacterial inactivation via prophage activation-associated lysis in addition to chemical oxidation. Reactive nitrogen species (RNS) scavenging tests revealed that RNS-mediated oxidative stress was closely associated with prophage activation. Activated phages further infected new hosts, reducing the viability of freshly cultured D. vulgaris cells by 25.7% and increasing total phage production 15.2-fold. The phenomenon was further validated in real sewage biofilms, where increased phage production and decreased bacterial viability were observed at a low FNA dose of 0.2 mg N/L, below the dose required for cell destruction by chemical oxidation. Furthermore, metagenomic analysis of 896 sewage samples worldwide revealed that 71.9% of recovered sewage-derived microbial genomes harbor prophages, indicating a widespread genomic basis for prophage activation-mediated bacterial inactivation. Overall, this study expands current understanding of the biocidal mechanisms of FNA and contributes to the development of environmentally sustainable biocidal strategies.
A new machine-learning framework aims to improve the success rate of computational protein design while moving away from results that reproduce sequences found in nature.
