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Mechanism of Resistance of Saccharomyces bailii to Benzoic, Sorbic and Other Weak Acids Used as Food Preservatives
Author(s) -
WARTH A. D.
Publication year - 1977
Publication title -
journal of applied bacteriology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.889
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1365-2672
pISSN - 0021-8847
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2672.1977.tb00745.x
Subject(s) - sorbic acid , preservative , benzoic acid , chemistry , food science , yeast , biochemistry , butyric acid , saccharomyces , saccharomyces cerevisiae
Saccharomyces bailii grows in the presence of high concentrations of sorbic, benzoic and other short‐chain monocarboxylic acids commonly used as preservatives. Starved cells concentrate these acids intracellularly, approximately as expected from the pH of the ceil and the p K a of the acid. On addition of glucose, the intracellular content of preservative is considerably reduced. The glucose effect is sensitive to metabolic inhibitors, and anaerobic respiration is stimulated by the preservatives. The ability to maintain a low intracellular concentration of any of the preservatives tested is induced by growth in the presence of sorbic or benzoic acid and less effectively by butyric or acetic acid. Both induced and uninduced cells are permeable to benzoic and butyric acids. Benzoate and sorbate are not metabolized at a rate significant with respect to the permeation rate. Resistance to these preservatives apparently results primarily from an inducible, energy requiring system which transports preservative from the cell.