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This research investigated the potential of multi-pass homogenization treatment for the inactivation of Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis inoculated at different levels in liquid whole egg (LWE) comparing the efficacy of this treatment with a traditional thermal one performed at 65 degrees C. Moreover, the effects of high pressure treatment (HPH) on structural and functional properties such as viscosity, microstructure and foaming abilities of LWE were investigated. The data obtained suggested that the multi-pass high pressure treatment at 100 MPa of S. enterica serovar Enteritidis inoculated in LWE at 7 and 4 log CFU/ml resulted in a first order inactivation kinetic, while the thermal inactivation curves of S. enterica serovar Enteritidis inoculated at 8 and 4 log CFU/ml presented a non-linear behaviour, with a marked tail after 3 min of treatment at 65 degrees C. Additionally, HPH treatment caused an increase in foaming capacity of LWE, with respect to the untreated samples, passing from values of 26% of the control to 50% of pressure treated samples.

La aplicación de nuevas tecnologías en el ámbito de la conservación de alimentos pretende dar respuesta al incremento de la demanda, por parte de los consumidores, de alimentos más parecidos a los frescos o naturales, más nutritivos y de fácil y rápida preparación (ready-to-eat meals). Las tecnologías más estudiadas en la actualidad se basan en el empleo de sistemas de destrucción o inactivación bacteriana sin necesidad de emplear un tratamiento térmico intenso. Se pretende así reducir los cambios perjudiciales en las propiedades físicas, químicas, nutricionales y sensoriales de los alimentos, pero manteniendo la vida útil. El objetivo general de este trabajo ha sido el estudio del impacto de la aplicación de nuevas tecnologías de conservación, como los Campos Eléctricos Pulsados (PEF) y las Altas Presiones de Homogeneización (HPH), sobre la estructura y los principales componentes químicos de alimentos fluidos (huevo líquido y salsas). Para ello, se ha estudiado la microestructura y se ha realizado el análisis químico de la fracción proteica y lipídica de estos alimentos. Además, se han estudiado diferentes propiedades físicas del huevo líquido tratado por PEF que determinan su calidad, como son la viscosidad, el color, y la capacidad espumante. Los experimentos se han realizado con muestras procesadas por PEF en el SIK (the Swedish Institute for Food and Biotechnology) y por HPH en la Università di Bologna, y se han llevado a cabo también después de una semana de almacenamiento refrigerado a 4ºC. Los resultados obtenidos en este estudio muestran que los tratamientos por PEF y HPH pueden ser una buena alternativa al tratamiento térmico convencional para la conservación de huevo líquido, por su menor impacto en la microestructura y en las propiedades químicas cuando se aplican a baja intensidad, si se compara con la pasteurización. Además, el tratamiento por PEF afecta mínimamente a las propiedades funcionales del huevo líquido.

[EN] Liquid whole egg (LWE) is currently pasteurized through the application of heat; however, this treatment entails deleterious effects against some of the functional and technological properties of the product. In this study, the effect of high-intensity pulsed electric fields (HIPEF) processing (field strength: 19, 32, and 37 kV/cm) was compared to the traditional heat pasteurization (66 degrees C for 4.5 min). Different physical and structural characteristics of LWE, subjected or not to homogenization, were evaluated and compared, having the untreated LWE as a reference. Thermal treatment caused an increase in the viscosity of LWE, especially in nonhomogenized samples. HIPEF treatments did not modify the original color of LWE, whereas thermally treated samples developed an opaque appearance. LWE treated at 19 and 32 kV/cm exhibited a similar foaming capacity as fresh untreated egg, whereas thermal processing and PEF treatments of 37 kV/cm caused a substantial decrease in the foaming capacity of untreated liquid egg. Regarding the microstructure, the lipoprotein matrix appeared to be less affected by the HIPEF than by heat treatment if compared to the control. In addition, heat pasteurization had a significant impact on both the water-soluble protein content of the LWE samples (19.5% to 23.6% decrease) and the mechanical properties of the egg gels (up to 21.3% and 14.5% increase in hardness and cohesiveness, respectively). On the other hand, these parameters were not substantially affected in the HIPEF-treated samples. Heat-induced gels obtained from HIPEF-treated samples did not exhibit remarkable differences in the water-holding capacity (WHC) with respect to heat-pasteurized samples. Practical Application The impact of high-intensity pulsed electric fields (HIPEF) processing on technological properties of liquid-whole egg was investigated and compared to that of thermal processing. Heat treatments cause a severe impact on the foaming capacity, the water-solub