Comparative effects of organic acids and aqueous extract of Allium sativum and Zingiber officinale on survival of Campylobacter jejuni on chicken meat

Background: Microorganisms have developed resistance as a result of the overuse of antibiotics. Finding alternatives to restrict the proliferation of microorganisms, especially those derived from plants, that are readily available and have notably fewer negative effects is therefore imperative. The current study compared the antibacterial properties of organic acids (lactic and acetic acids), Zingiber officinale, and Allium sativum aqueous extracts against Campylobacter jejuni‘s ability to survive on chicken meat.Methods: An agar well diffusion assay was used to measure the antibacterial activity of each organic acid and aqueous extract against five Campylobacter jejuni isolates. Using the broth microdilution method, the aqueous extracts’ Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) was examined. Using a food model, the log reduction test was used to assess the extracts’ and organic acids’ antibacterial properties.Results: The highest zone of inhibition was seen against Allium sativum (22±2.00mm), followed by Zingiber officinale (20.3±1.5mm), lactic acid (15.3±0.5mm) and acetic acid (13.6±0.5mm), and Allium sativum and Zingiber officinale were found to have MICs of 3.5% and 2.5% (v/v), respectively. After 100 minutes of contact at 25°C, aqueous extract of Allium sativum showed the best results (3.31±0.39 log CFU/g) on the log reduction assay followed by Zingiber officinale (2.36±0.13 log CFU/g), lactic acid (2.22±0.02 log CFU/g) and acetic acid (1.36±0.09 log CFU/g).Conclusion: Allium sativum, Zingiber officinale, and organic acids have potent anti-Campylobacter properties and can be utilized safely to lower the Campylobacter jejuni load when processing chicken meat.KeywordsOrganic acid, Zingiber officinale, Allium sativum, Campylobacter jejuni, log reduction assay, campylobacteriosis