Control of Shigatoxin-producing Escherichia coli in cheese by dairy bacterial strains

Bio-preservation could be a valuable way to control Shigatoxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) in cheese. To this end, 41 strains were screened for their inhibitory potential on model cheese curd and on pasteurized and raw milk uncooked pressed cheeses. Strains of Lactococcus lactis, Lactococcus garvieae, Leuconostoc pseudomesenteroides, Leuconostoc citreum, Lactobacillus sp, Carnobacterium mobile, Enterococcus faecalis, Enterococcus faecium, Macrococcus caseolyticus and Hafnia alvei reduced STEC O26:H11 counts by 1.4-2.5 log cfu g(-1) and to a lesser extent STEC O157:H7 counts in pasteurized milk cheeses. Some strains can act in synergy to inhibit STEC in raw milk uncooked pressed cheeses. Inhibitory associations had no adverse effect on the sensory characteristics of these cheeses. The association of H. alvei, Lactobacillus plantarum and Lc. lactis was the most inhibitory: after inoculation of this consortium into milk, STEC O26:H11 and O157:H7, inoculated at 2 log cfu ml(-1), were reduced by up to 3 log cfu g(-1) in ripened cheese. Inhibition in cheese cannot be predicted from H2O2 production in BHI medium, decreased pH or milk reduction. It is not clear what role the rapid decrease in pH during the first 6 h may play in the inhibition. Further studies will be needed to determine the nature of the inhibition.

Induction of IGFBP-1 expression by amino acid deprivation of HepG2 human hepatoma cells involves both a transcriptional activation and an mRNA stabilization due to its 3'UTR

A dramatic overexpression of IGFBP-1 is responsible for growth inhibition, in response to a low-protein diet feeding. It has been demonstrated that a fall in the amino acid concentration was directly responsible for IGFBP-1 induction. In this report, we sought to determine the mechanism by which amino acid limitation upregulates IGFBP-1 expression. Our results show that both transcriptional activation and mRNA stabilization are involved. We also demonstrate that (i) the mGCN2/ATF4 pathway is not involved in this regulation and (ii) the 3'UTR of IGFBP-1 mRNA is responsible for its destabilization and regulates its stability in response to amino acid starvation.