antibacterial activity of cell-free culture supernatant of bacteriocinogenic pediococcus pentosaceus io1 against staphylococcus aureus inoculated in fruit juices

Background: staphylococcus aureus is a major food-borne pathogen worldwide and a frequent contaminant of fruit juices. this study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial activity of bacteriocin-containing cell-free culture supernatants (cfcs) of pediococcus pentosaceus io1 against s. aureus inoculated in fruit juices, as well as their impact on the juice sensory attributes.methods: the orange and watermelon juice samples were treated with bacteriocin supernatant at different concentrations (1, 5, and 10% v/v) and the sensory attributes were evaluated using a 5-point hedonic scale and thereafter inoculated with a culture of s. aureus. then, the inhibitory effect of bacteriocin-containing cfcs of p. pentosaceus io1 against s. aureus in the fruit juices was evaluated by in situ and plate assays.results: the 10% (v/v) bacteriocin-containing cfcs exhibited the highest antibacterial activity, reducing s. aureus counts in pasteurized orange and watermelon juices by 1.42 and 2.12 log colony forming units (cfu)/ml, respectively, and by 1.03 and 0.88 log cfu/ml in unpasteurized orange and watermelon juices, respectively, compared to the control. the taste, colour, and overall acceptability of pasteurized orange and watermelon juices treated with 1% (v/v) bacteriocin supernatant and 0.1% (w/v) sodium benzoate were not significantly different (p=0.228) from those pasteurized orange and watermelon juices without preservative.conclusion: the bacteriocin produced by p. pentosaceus io1 could be used as a natural preservative in fruit juices to control s. aureus.