Potential of Antimicrobial Peptide-Overexpressed <em>Tenebrio molitor</em> Larvae Extract as a Natural Preservative for Korean Traditional Sauces

oleh: Dooseon Hwang, Seung Hun Lee, Tae-Won Goo, Eun-Young Yun

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2022-04-01

Deskripsi

Here, we aimed to produce a natural food preservative using a crude extract from edible, immunized <i>Tenebrio molitor</i> larvae (iTME), injected with edible bacteria using an edible solvent. Results showed that iTME had concentration-dependent inhibitory activity against food-poisoning bacteria <i>Escherichia coli</i>, <i>Bacillus cereus</i>, and <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i>, as well as against harmful fungi <i>Aspergillus flavus</i>, <i>Aspergillus parasiticus</i>, and <i>Pichia anomala</i>. Moreover, iTME showed antimicrobial activity against beneficial microorganisms <i>Bacillus subtilis</i> and <i>Aspergillus oryzae</i>, but not <i>Lactobacillus acidophilus</i>. Furthermore, the minimum inhibitory concentration of iTME against <i>E. coli</i>, <i>B. cereus</i>, and <i>S. aureus</i> was 1 mg/mL, and iTME did not lose its inhibitory activity when treated at varying temperature, pH, and salinity. In addition, the antibacterial activity was lost after reacting the iTME with trypsin and chymotrypsin. The addition of iTME to Ganjang inoculated with harmful bacteria inhibited bacterial growth. Therefore, we propose that iTME can be used as a safe natural preservative to prolong food shelf life by inhibiting the growth of food-poisoning bacteria in a variety of foods, including traditional sauces.