Regina Célia Santos Mendonça

Bio: Regina Célia Santos Mendonça is an academic researcher from Universidade Federal de Viçosa. The author has contributed to research in topics: Effluent & Electrocoagulation. The author has an hindex of 14, co-authored 38 publications receiving 549 citations. Previous affiliations of Regina Célia Santos Mendonça include Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina.

Acetate cellulose film with bacteriophages for potential antimicrobial use in food packaging

Abstract: The search for new technologies that guarantee the safety and quality of food has intensified, as has concern for consumer health, leading to the adoption of measures to reduce food-related risks. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the efficiency of active biodegradable films incorporated with bacteriophage for future application in packaging materials. Cellulose acetate films incorporated with solution of bacteriophages showed antimicrobial activity against Salmonella Typhimurium ATCC 14028 displayed the formation of inhibition zones in Muller-Hinton agar, and a growth curve, using the diffusion method in liquid medium. There was an increase in the lag phase and slower growth of microorganisms in the environment containing bacteriophages with the films, compared to control. The mechanical and physical properties of films, such as thickness, elongation and puncture resistance showed no significant effects. However, tensile resistance was different between control and treatments. The addition of bacteriophage altered the film surface, as observed by atomic force microscopy. There was a higher porosity of the films containing the bacteriophage solution compared to control. The acetate films may be incorporated with bacteriophages, since the physical and mechanical properties of the films were not changed drastically and there was an effect of the antimicrobial film.

Absorbent food pads containing bacteriophages for potential antimicrobial use in refrigerated food products

Abstract: The incessant search by the consumer for products that are ready for consumption and for new technologies aimed at ensuring the safety and quality of food has intensified with the adoption of measures that can reduce these risks. This work shows that an absorbent food pad used in chilled meat trays, containing a mix of six bacteriophages, BFSE16, BFSE18, PaDTA1, PaDTA9, PaDTA10 and PaDTA11 isolated and characterized by the work group, used as biocontrol, has application in the food preservation area. It is an excellent method of extending the shelf life of refrigerated processed foods ready for consumption. The system was evaluated for the ability, in vitro, to reduce the initial count of Salmonella Typhimurium present in the environment. Three different phage concentrations were incorporated in pads that have the ability to reduce 4.36, 3.66 and 0.87 log cycles at 15 °C, respectively, and an average 0.55 log cycles at 10 °C at the concentrations used. The higher the concentration of this bacteriophage, the better its effect on the host, having a greater capacity for infection. The viable phage remained on the pad during the treatment time of 48 h.

Bacteriophage Applications for Food Production and Processing.

Abstract: Foodborne illnesses remain a major cause of hospitalization and death worldwide despite many advances in food sanitation techniques and pathogen surveillance. Traditional antimicrobial methods, such as pasteurization, high pressure processing, irradiation, and chemical disinfectants are capable of reducing microbial populations in foods to varying degrees, but they also have considerable drawbacks, such as a large initial investment, potential damage to processing equipment due to their corrosive nature, and a deleterious impact on organoleptic qualities (and possibly the nutritional value) of foods. Perhaps most importantly, these decontamination strategies kill indiscriminately, including many—often beneficial—bacteria that are naturally present in foods. One promising technique that addresses several of these shortcomings is bacteriophage biocontrol, a green and natural method that uses lytic bacteriophages isolated from the environment to specifically target pathogenic bacteria and eliminate them from (or significantly reduce their levels in) foods. Since the initial conception of using bacteriophages on foods, a substantial number of research reports have described the use of bacteriophage biocontrol to target a variety of bacterial pathogens in various foods, ranging from ready-to-eat deli meats to fresh fruits and vegetables, and the number of commercially available products containing bacteriophages approved for use in food safety applications has also been steadily increasing. Though some challenges remain, bacteriophage biocontrol is increasingly recognized as an attractive modality in our arsenal of tools for safely and naturally eliminating pathogenic bacteria from foods.

Phage Therapy in the Food Industry

Abstract: Despite advances in modern technologies, the food industry is continuously challenged with the threat of microbial contamination. The overuse of antibiotics has further escalated this problem, resulting in the increasing emergence of antibiotic-resistant foodborne pathogens. Efforts to develop new methods for controlling microbial contamination in food and the food processing environment are extremely important. Accordingly, bacteriophages (phages) and their derivatives have emerged as novel, viable, and safe options for the prevention, treatment, and/or eradication of these contaminants in a range of foods and food processing environments. Whole phages, modified phages, and their derivatives are discussed in terms of current uses and future potential as antimicrobials in the traditional farm-to-fork context, encompassing areas such as primary production, postharvest processing, biosanitation, and biodetection. The review also presents some safety concerns to ensure safe and effective exploitation of bacteriophages in the future.

Application of Biodegradable Polymers in Food Packaging Industry: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract: For last 50 years plastics are widely used for manufacturing of packaging materials because of their performance and ease in production. With the advent of food processing industries there is a great demand for petroleum based packaging materials for food applications. However, increased use of plastics has created serious ecological problems to the environment because of their resistance to biodegradation. Biopolymers can be used as a solution to the problems posed by plastics as they easily degrade in the environment and also mimic the properties of conventional polymers. Biopolymers can be classified into three categories according to their origins of production. These are polymers extracted from biomass, synthesized from bio-derived monomers and produced from microorganisms. There are different film formation methods for biopolymers like solution casting method, melt mix method, electro spinning method, thermo pressing and casting, extrusion blown film method. The quality of polymers can be expressed as different properties like physical, thermal, mechanical and barrier properties. This review highlights the different kinds of biodegradable polymers, their characteristics with special emphasis on their market potential for food packaging applications. The review revels that presently starch based, PLA, PHA and different blends have been manufactured by industries, film properties compared with petrochemical based polymer for MAP and other food packaging applications. Since information on biopolymers is widely scattered over many sources and are very scarce compared to the conventional polymers, this article intends to give an overview of the state of the art on biodegradable polymer packages for food applications.

Recent Advances in Antimicrobial Polymers: A Mini-Review.

Abstract: Human safety and well-being is threatened by microbes causing numerous infectious diseases resulting in a large number of deaths every year. Despite substantial progress in antimicrobial drugs, many infectious diseases remain difficult to treat. Antimicrobial polymers offer a promising antimicrobial strategy for fighting pathogens and have received considerable attention in both academic and industrial research. This mini-review presents the advances made in antimicrobial polymers since 2013. Antimicrobial mechanisms exhibiting either passive or active action and polymer material types containing bound or leaching antimicrobials are introduced. This article also addresses the applications of these antimicrobial polymers in the medical, food, and textile industries.