Chemistry: molecular biology and microbiology – Measuring or testing process involving enzymes or... – Involving viable micro-organism
Patent
1990-08-17
1992-07-21
Lacey, David L.
Chemistry: molecular biology and microbiology
Measuring or testing process involving enzymes or...
Involving viable micro-organism
435176, 435177, 435180, 435182, C12Q 122, C12N 1114, C12N 1102
Patent
active
051322110
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a product and a method for biological control of a process of the type of sterilization, pasteurization or cooking.
Heat treatment of various products by sterilization, pasteurization or cooking for killing various micro-organisms is applied within the food industry, breweries and dairies, public health service, sanitary and medical article industry, drug industry etc. In monitoring such heat treatment processes within the health service and medical article industry so called spore slips of paper are used. Such paper slips are caused to absorb various types of spores, for example, of Bacillus subtilis and of Bacillus stearothermphilus, which are temperature stable up to specific temperature ranges. These spore slips are then placed together with non-sterile sanitary articles for sterilization in an autoclave at the temperature of about 120.degree. C. for about 20 minutes, alternatively in a gaseous atmosphere of ethylene oxide, formaldehyde or heated steam. The spore slips are checked with respect to possible surviving spores by the slips being put in a nutrient solution provided with a pH indicator (e.g. BTB-bromothymol blue). A change of colour of the nutrient solution after having been incubated for 1-3 days at 37.degree. C., alternatively 55-60.degree. C., will indicate that the autoclave treatment has been incomplete.
The use of the spore slips mentioned above is limited to applications where the risk of contaminating the products and the process equipment is not crucial to the continued function of the same. This means that said method cannot be accepted for sterility control in food production, particularly not for direct process control of e.g. liquid food products where the spores from the spore slips would be transferred directly to the product and infect the same.
The remaining present alternatives of various types of sterility control are, for example, to registrate continuously the temperature development in the process by controlling the temperature in autoclaves and other sterility reactors. The disadvantage of this procedure resides in the fact that it is only possible to measure at random at specified points of the equipment, not directly on each particle in, for example a liquid product or a product containing pieces.
The present invention relates to a product and a method for a biological sterility control directly in various processes of sterilization, pasteurization or cooking without any risk of contaminating the product to be sterilized and the process equipment. More particularly, according to one aspect of the invention it relates to a preferably water-containing gel body, having a discrete or delimited physical form, said body being characterized in that it reproducible resistance; structure preventing the encapsulated micro-organism from diffusing out but allowing a nutrient solution adjusted to the micro-organism to diffuse in and metabolites produced to diffuse out; for sterilization, pasteurization or cooking; micro-organism when incubated in a nutrient solution.
The invention also relates to a method of conducting a biological control of a sterilization, pasteurization or cooking process, the method being characterized by the steps that one or more gel bodies according to the invention are added to the product to be sterilized, that the product containing gel bodies is subjected to conventional sterilization, and that the gel body or bodies are separated from the sterilized product after completion of the sterilization process and incubated in a nutrient solution adjusted to the micro-organism, where possible growth of the micro-organism is indicated, for example, by a colour change of the nutrient solution.
The gel body according to the invention can consist of any suitable gel material having the properties defined under a) to f). For instance, the gel material can consist of polyacrylamide, calcium alginate, polyurethane, gelatine, agar or a combination thereof.
The gel body can consist of one single gel material, e.g. polyacrylamide, prefe
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Hedstrom Marianne
Lundin Jan-Olof
Ronner Ulf
Chan William K. Y.
Diffchamb AB
Lacey David L.
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