TY - JOUR AU - Lahmer, Rabya A. AU - Jones, Davey L. AU - Williams, Prysor PY - 2016/06/30 Y2 - 2024/03/29 TI - Survival and metabolic characteristics of Lux-Marked Escherichia coli O157:H7 in different types of milk JF - Al-Mukhtar Journal of Sciences JA - MJSc VL - 31 IS - 1 SE - Research Articles DO - 10.54172/mjsc.v31i1.217 UR - https://omu.edu.ly/journals/index.php/mjsc/article/view/217 SP - 24-33 AB - <p><em>Escherichia coli</em> O157:H7 is a potentially lethal pathogen which has been responsible for several outbreaks of milk<em>-</em>borne illness in recent years. The objective of this study was to evaluate the survival and metabolic activity (indexed by bioluminescence) of a chromosomally <em>lux</em><em>-</em>marked strain of <em>E. coli</em> O157:H7 in raw, pasteurized and microfiltered pasteurized milk at 4 and 20°C for up to 14 d. Results showed that the population of <em>E. coli</em> O157:H7 and its metabolic activity decreased in all samples during storage at 4°C, with no significant differences in numbers observed between the different milk types; but the metabolic activity was significantly higher (<em>P</em>&lt;0.05) in the microfiltered pasteurized milk than that in raw milk. At 20°C, <em>E. coli</em> O157:H7 counts and cell activity peaked at day 2, and then declined progressively. At 20°C, survival and metabolic activity were significantly lower in raw milk compared with pasteurized milk. We conclude that storage temperature is more important in regulating the survival of <em>E. coli</em> O157:H7 in contaminated milk than its origin/pre<em>–</em>treatment conditions.</p> ER -