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Feasibility of Using Catalase Activity as an Index of Microbial Loads on Chicken Surfaces
Author(s) -
WANG GEORGE I. J.,
FUNG DANIEL Y.C.
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
journal of food science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 150
eISSN - 1750-3841
pISSN - 0022-1147
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2621.1986.tb13829.x
Subject(s) - catalase , food science , membrane filter , population , chemistry , bacteria , biology , enzyme , membrane , biochemistry , demography , sociology , genetics
The Catalasemeter with membrane filter method was tested to quantitate the catalase activity of laboratory cultures as well as swab samples from cold‐stored (7°C) chicken as measurements of microbial activity. Catalasemeter reading (flotation time in sec) is inversely proportional to total number of catalase producing bacteria. Good correlation (r =−0.93) was obtained between Catalasemeter and both viable cell population and psychrotroph population of cold‐stored chicken. For good quality cold‐stored chicken (<10 3 CFU/cm 2 ), the flotation time was longer than 4,200 sec; and in the case of poor quality cold‐stored chicken (>10 6 CFU/cm 2 ), the flotaton time was less than 580 sec. This provides a guideline for rapidly estimating microbial loads in cold‐stored chicken.