Screening of Lactobacilli Derived from Fermented Foods and Partial Characterization of Lactobacillus casei OSY-LB6A for Its Antibacterial Activity against Foodborne Pathogens

Hyun-Jung Chung,Ahmed E. Yousef 한국식품영양과학회 2009 Preventive Nutrition and Food Science Vol.14 No.2

Various fermented foods were screened in search of food-grade bacteria that produce bacteriocins active against Gram-negative pathogens. An isolate from a mold-ripened cheese presented antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The most active isolate was identified as Lactobacillus casei by a biochemical method, ribotyping, and membrane lipid analysis, and was designated as OSY-LB6A. The cell extracts of the isolate showed inhibition against Escherichia coli p220, E. coli O157, Salmonella enerica serovar Enteritidis, Salmonella Typhimurium, and Listeria monocytogenes. The antibacterial nature of the cell extract from the isolate was confirmed by eliminating the inhibitory effects of acid, hydrogen peroxide, and lytic bacteriophages. The culture supernatant and cell extract retained antibacterial activity after heating at 60~100℃ for 10~20 min. The activity of the cell extract from Lb. casei was eliminated by pronase and lipase. Finally, the cell extract showed a bactericidal mode of action against E. coli in phosphate buffer solution, but it was bacteriostatic in broth medium and food extracts.

Screening of Lactobacilli Derived from Fermented Foods and Partial Characterization of Lactobacillus casei OSY-LB6A for Its Antibacterial Activity against Foodborne Pathogens

Chung, Hyun-Jung,Yousef, Ahmed E. The Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition 2009 Preventive Nutrition and Food Science Vol.14 No.2

Various fermented foods were screened in search of food-grade bacteria that produce bacteriocins active against Gram-negative pathogens. An isolate from a mold-ripened cheese presented antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The most active isolate was identified as Lactobacillus casei by a biochemical method, ribotyping, and membrane lipid analysis, and was designated as OSY-LB6A. The cell extracts of the isolate showed inhibition against Escherichia coli p220, E. coli O157, Salmonella enerica serovar Enteritidis, Salmonella Typhimurium, and Listeria monocytogenes. The antibacterial nature of the cell extract from the isolate was confirmed by eliminating the inhibitory effects of acid, hydrogen peroxide, and lytic bacteriophages. The culture supernatant and cell extract retained antibacterial activity after heating at $60{\sim}100^{\circ}C$ for $10{\sim}20$ min. The activity of the cell extract from Lb. casei was eliminated by pronase and lipase. Finally, the cell extract showed a bactericidal mode of action against E. coli in phosphate buffer solution, but it was bacteriostatic in broth medium and food extracts.

Inactivation of Barotolerant Strains of Listeria monocytogenes and Escherichia coli O157:H7 by Ultra High Pressure and tert-Butylhydroquinone Combination

Yoon-Kyung Chung,Ahmed E. Yousef 한국미생물학회 2008 The journal of microbiology Vol.46 No.3

Antimicrobial efficacy of ultra-high-pressure (UHP) can be enhanced by application of additional hurdles. The objective of this study was to systematically assess the enhancement in pressure lethality by TBHQ treatment, against barotolerant strains of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Listeria monocytogenes. Two L. monocytogenes Scott A and the barotolerant OSY-328 strain, and two E. coli O157:H7 strains, EDL-933 and its barotolerant mutant, OSY-ASM, were tested. Cell suspensions containing TBHQ (50 ppm, dissolved in dimethyl sulfoxide) were pressurized at 200 to 500 MPa (23±2°C) for 1 min, plated on tryptose agar and enumerated the survivors. The TBHQ-UHP combination resulted in synergistic inactivation of both pathogens, with different degrees of lethality among strains. The pressure lethality threshold, for the combination treatment, was lower for E. coli O157:H7 (≥ 200 MPa) than for L. monocytogenes (> 300 MPa). E. coli O157:H7 strains were extremely sensitive to the TBHQ-UHP treatment, compared to Listeria strains. Interestingly, a control treatment involving DMSO-UHP combination consistently resulted in higher inactivation than that achieved by UHP alone, against all strains tested. However, sensitization of the pathogens to UHP by the additives (TBHQ in DMSO) was prominently greater for UHP than DMSO. Differences in sensitivities to the treatment between these two pathogens may be attributed to discrepancies in cellular structure or physiological functions.

Effective Diagnosis and Monitoring of Heart Disease

Ahmed Fawzi Otoom,Emad E. Abdallah,Yousef Kilani,Ahmed Kefaye,Mohammad Ashour 보안공학연구지원센터 2015 International Journal of Software Engineering and Vol.9 No.1

Wearable sensor mobile technologies and machine learning techniques are considered as two of the key research areas in the computer science and healthcare application industries. Our main aim is to build a simple yet accurate mobile application that is capable of real-time diagnosis and monitoring of patients with Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) or heart disease which is a major cause of death worldwide. Most available mobile healthcare systems focus on the data acquisition and monitoring component with little attention paid to real-time diagnosis. In this work, we build an intelligent classifier that is capable of predicting a heart disease problem based on clinical data entered by the user or the doctor and by using machine learning algorithms. This diagnosis component is integrated in the mobile application with a real-time monitoring component that continuously monitors the patient and raises an alarm whenever an emergency occurs. Our results show that the proposed diagnosis component has proved successful with a classification performance accuracy of more than 85% with the cross-validation test. Moreover, the monitoring algorithm provided a 100% detection rate.

Prediction of ultimate shear strength and failure modes of R/C ledge beams using machine learning framework

Ahmed M. Yousef,Karim Abd El-Hady,Mohamed E. El-Madawy Techno-Press 2022 Structural monitoring and maintenance Vol.9 No.4

The objective of this study is to present a data-driven machine learning (ML) framework for predicting ultimate shear strength and failure modes of reinforced concrete ledge beams. Experimental tests were collected on these beams with different loading, geometric and material properties. The database was analyzed using different ML algorithms including decision trees, discriminant analysis, support vector machine, logistic regression, nearest neighbors, naïve bayes, ensemble and artificial neural networks to identify the governing and critical parameters of reinforced concrete ledge beams. The results showed that ML framework can effectively identify the failure mode of these beams either web shear failure, flexural failure or ledge failure. ML framework can also derive equations for predicting the ultimate shear strength for each failure mode. A comparison of the ultimate shear strength of ledge failure was conducted between the experimental results and the results from the proposed equations and the design equations used by international codes. These comparisons indicated that the proposed ML equations predict the ultimate shear strength of reinforced concrete ledge beams better than the design equations of AASHTO LRFD-2020 or PCI-2020.

Proanthocyanidin-Rich Date Seed Extract Protects Against Chemically Induced Hepatorenal Toxicity

Atallah F. Ahmed,Jawaher H. Al-Qahtani,Hanan M. Al-Yousef,Mansour S. Al-Said,AbdelKader E. Ashour,Mohammed Al-Sohaibani,Syed Rafatullah 한국식품영양과학회 2015 Journal of medicinal food Vol.18 No.3

A hydroacetone extract was prepared from seeds of Phoenix dactylifera L. var. Khalas, which is an industrial by-product of date processing. The proanthocyanidin nature of the extract (coded as DTX) was characterized by phytochemical and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyses. The total phenol/proanthocyanidin content and antioxidant activity of DTX were estimated by Folin–Ciocalteu, vanillin-sulfuric acid, and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assays, respectively. The hepatorenal protective activity of DTX was evaluated using CCl4-induced toxicity model in rats, in comparison with silymarin (SYL). Results of the histopathological examination and measurements of various hepatorenal serum indices and tissue biochemical markers demonstrated that DTX displayed marked protective potential against CCl4-induced liver and kidney injury at 100 mg/kg/rat. Relative to the control CCl4-intoxicated group, pretreatment with DTX significantly (P<.001) suppressed the elevated serum levels of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase (ALT and AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), γ-glutamyl transferase (GGT), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), bilirubin, creatinine, and calcium, whereas it significantly (P<.001) increased the diminished serum levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and total protein (TP). Moreover, DTX significantly decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) formation and increased TP synthesis in hepatorenal tissues compared with the intoxicated control. The improvement in biochemical parameters by DTX was observed in a dose-dependent manner and confirmed by restoration of normal histological features. The acute toxicity test of DTX in rats revealed safety of the extract. This study reveals that DTX enhances the recovery from xenobiotics-induced toxicity initiated by free radicals.

Effect of Nisin against Clostridium botulinum During Spore-to-Cell Transformation

Yoon-Kyung Chung,Ahmed E. Yousef 한국식품영양과학회 2007 Preventive Nutrition and Food Science Vol.12 No.4

It has been proposed that the mode of action of nisin against vegetative cells and spores of Clostridium botulinum is different. However, clear explanation is not available. Therefore, nisin action against vegetative cells and spores of C. botulinum was investigated in this study. Nisin was added at various stages of spore-to-vegetative cell transition and changes to sensitivity to the bacteriocin were observed. Different nisin preparation (Nisaplin or pure nisin) was compared for their activity against different stages of spore transformation of C. botulinum ATCC 25763. Germination was measured by determining loss of heat resistance and observing phase darkening of spores under phase-contrast microscope. Nisin acted bactericidally against vegetative cells, but acted sporostatically against spores of C. botulinum under the same concentration. This bactericidal and sporostatic action of nisin was dependent on the concentration of nisin used. Presence of nisin during spore activation by heat increased subsequent phase darkening and germination rates. However, nisin inhibited the germination and the outgrowth, when it was added after heat activation stage. Findings from this study suggest that the time of addition of nisin is very important for the effective control of spores during the heating process of foods. In addition, it may be possible to apply nisin at the stage of processing that coincides with the most sensitive stage of spore transformation.

Culturability of Clostridium botulinum Spores under Different Germination Conditions, Sublethal Heat Treatments, and in the Presence of Nisin

Chung, Yoon-Kyung,Yousef, Ahmed E. The Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition 2007 Preventive Nutrition and Food Science Vol.12 No.4

Thermal resistance and heat activation characteristics of Clostridium botulinum ATCC 25763 spores were evaluated. The effects of nisin and pH on the activation and subsequent germination were also investigated. Spores of C. botulinum were not inactivated by heat treatments up to $92^{\circ}C$ for 2 hr. Heat treatment at $85^{\circ}C$ for 90 min was selected as the optimal activation condition based on monitoring subsequent germination. L-alanine alone or in combination with L-cysteine was not sufficient to germinate the spores of this strain. Tryptone-Peptone- Glucose-Yeast extract (TPGY) broth supplemented with L-alanine was used as a suitable germination medium. Decreasing pH of activation suspension increased the degree of phase darkening, i.e., germination. In addition, the presence of nisin during activation increased the degree of phase darkening. The majority of spore populations were dormant at a pH of less than 2.8, and these populations required heat activation to increase the culturability on TPGY agar medium. However, extended heating in the presence of nisin at pH 2.8 decreased the spore count; however, heat activation was less necessary at pH 3.4, compared at pH 2.8.

Effect of Nisin against Clostridium botulinum During Spore-to-Cell Transformation

Chung, Yoon-Kyung,Yousef, Ahmed E. The Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition 2007 Preventive Nutrition and Food Science Vol.12 No.4

It has been proposed that the mode of action of nisin against vegetative cells and spores of Clostridium botulinum is different. However, clear explanation is not available. Therefore, nisin action against vegetative cells and spores of C. botulinum was investigated in this study. Nisin was added at various stages of spore-to-vegetative cell transition and changes to sensitivity to the bacteriocin were observed. Different nisin preparation (Nisaplin or pure nisin) was compared for their activity against different stages of spore transformation of C. botulinum ATCC 25763. Germination was measured by determining loss of heat resistance and observing phase darkening of spores under phase-contrast microscope. Nisin acted bactericidally against vegetative cells, but acted sporostatically against spores of C. botulinum under the same concentration. This bactericidal and sporostatic action of nisin was dependent on the concentration of nisin used. Presence of nisin during spore activation by heat increased subsequent phase darkening and germination rates. However, nisin inhibited the germination and the outgrowth, when it was added after heat activation stage. Findings from this study suggest that the time of addition of nisin is very important for the effective control of spores during the heating process of foods. In addition, it may be possible to apply nisin at the stage of processing that coincides with the most sensitive stage of spore transformation.

Culturability of Clostridium botulinum Spores under Different Germination Conditions, Sublethal Heat Treatments, and in the Presence of Nisin

Yoon-Kyung Chung,Ahmed E. Yousef 한국식품영양과학회 2007 Preventive Nutrition and Food Science Vol.12 No.4

Thermal resistance and heat activation characteristics of Clostridium botulinum ATCC 25763 spores were evaluated. The effects of nisin and pH on the activation and subsequent germination were also investigated. Spores of C. botulinum were not inactivated by heat treatments up to 92℃ for 2 hr. Heat treatment at 85℃ for 90 min was selected as the optimal activation condition based on monitoring subsequent germination. L-alanine alone or in combination with L-cysteine was not sufficient to germinate the spores of this strain. Tryptone-Peptone-Glucose-Yeast extract (TPGY) broth supplemented with L-alanine was used as a suitable germination medium. Decreasing pH of activation suspension increased the degree of phase darkening, i.e., germination. In addition, the presence of nisin during activation increased the degree of phase darkening. The majority of spore populations were dormant at a pH of less than 2.8, and these populations required heat activation to increase the culturability on TPGY agar medium. However, extended heating in the presence of nisin at pH 2.8 decreased the spore count; however, heat activation was less necessary at pH 3.4, compared at pH 2.8.