Illegal Nitrite Treatment of Red Tuna and Prolonged Storage: What About Other Food Safety Risks?
The illegal treatment of tuna with nitrite is a significant food safety concern. The risk may be due to not only the high nitrite levels and the possible formation of N-Nitrosamines but also to the possible increase in biogenic amines and microbial load and also pathogens. This study optimized the t...
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MDPI AG
2025-04-01
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| author | Simona Summa Marco Iammarino Sonia Lo Magro Pasqualino D'Antini Giovanna La Salandra Maria Grazia Basanisi Gaia Nobili Giovanna Berardi Marco Emanuele Langianese Gianfranco La Bella Marilena Muscarella |
| author_facet | Simona Summa Marco Iammarino Sonia Lo Magro Pasqualino D'Antini Giovanna La Salandra Maria Grazia Basanisi Gaia Nobili Giovanna Berardi Marco Emanuele Langianese Gianfranco La Bella Marilena Muscarella |
| author_sort | Simona Summa |
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| description | The illegal treatment of tuna with nitrite is a significant food safety concern. The risk may be due to not only the high nitrite levels and the possible formation of N-Nitrosamines but also to the possible increase in biogenic amines and microbial load and also pathogens. This study optimized the treatment of red tuna (<i>Thunnus thynnus</i>) with nitrite solutions and then determined several chemical (histamine, total volatile basic nitrogen (TVBN), biogenic amines, nitrite/nitrate, ascorbic acid, and sulfites) and microbiological (total microbial count, <i>Enterobacteriaceae</i>, <i>Vibrionaceae</i>, coagulase-positive staphylococci, <i>Salmonella</i>, <i>Escherichia coli</i>) parameters, comparing the results obtained with fresh samples with those obtained with treated samples after 5 days of storage (4 °C). The effect of such treatment on samples voluntarily contaminated with some pathogens was also investigated. The results indicate that if the products are characterized by suitable hygienic quality, the total microbial load and the levels of histamine and TVBN after 5 days of storage are below the legal limits, and no health risk subsists. The growth of pathogens/histaminogens (<i>Salmonella</i> and <i>Morganella morganii</i>) was also substantially inhibited during storage. Thus, this work confirmed that the high nitrite amounts and the possible development of <i>N</i>-nitrosamines represent the only significant food safety concerns. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-49c5587f8e6b4f14aa9b1b4398e29cdb |
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| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-49c5587f8e6b4f14aa9b1b4398e29cdb2025-08-20T02:09:11ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172025-04-01157397510.3390/app15073975Illegal Nitrite Treatment of Red Tuna and Prolonged Storage: What About Other Food Safety Risks?Simona Summa0Marco Iammarino1Sonia Lo Magro2Pasqualino D'Antini3Giovanna La Salandra4Maria Grazia Basanisi5Gaia Nobili6Giovanna Berardi7Marco Emanuele Langianese8Gianfranco La Bella9Marilena Muscarella10Department of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, Italy“P.O. Tatarella” Laboratory, Azienda Sanitaria della Provincia di Foggia, Via Michele Protano, 13, 71121 Foggia, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Via Manfredonia 20, 71121 Foggia, ItalyThe illegal treatment of tuna with nitrite is a significant food safety concern. The risk may be due to not only the high nitrite levels and the possible formation of N-Nitrosamines but also to the possible increase in biogenic amines and microbial load and also pathogens. This study optimized the treatment of red tuna (<i>Thunnus thynnus</i>) with nitrite solutions and then determined several chemical (histamine, total volatile basic nitrogen (TVBN), biogenic amines, nitrite/nitrate, ascorbic acid, and sulfites) and microbiological (total microbial count, <i>Enterobacteriaceae</i>, <i>Vibrionaceae</i>, coagulase-positive staphylococci, <i>Salmonella</i>, <i>Escherichia coli</i>) parameters, comparing the results obtained with fresh samples with those obtained with treated samples after 5 days of storage (4 °C). The effect of such treatment on samples voluntarily contaminated with some pathogens was also investigated. The results indicate that if the products are characterized by suitable hygienic quality, the total microbial load and the levels of histamine and TVBN after 5 days of storage are below the legal limits, and no health risk subsists. The growth of pathogens/histaminogens (<i>Salmonella</i> and <i>Morganella morganii</i>) was also substantially inhibited during storage. Thus, this work confirmed that the high nitrite amounts and the possible development of <i>N</i>-nitrosamines represent the only significant food safety concerns.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/7/3975adulterationfood safetynitritetuna |
| spellingShingle | Simona Summa Marco Iammarino Sonia Lo Magro Pasqualino D'Antini Giovanna La Salandra Maria Grazia Basanisi Gaia Nobili Giovanna Berardi Marco Emanuele Langianese Gianfranco La Bella Marilena Muscarella Illegal Nitrite Treatment of Red Tuna and Prolonged Storage: What About Other Food Safety Risks? Applied Sciences adulteration food safety nitrite tuna |
| title | Illegal Nitrite Treatment of Red Tuna and Prolonged Storage: What About Other Food Safety Risks? |
| title_full | Illegal Nitrite Treatment of Red Tuna and Prolonged Storage: What About Other Food Safety Risks? |
| title_fullStr | Illegal Nitrite Treatment of Red Tuna and Prolonged Storage: What About Other Food Safety Risks? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Illegal Nitrite Treatment of Red Tuna and Prolonged Storage: What About Other Food Safety Risks? |
| title_short | Illegal Nitrite Treatment of Red Tuna and Prolonged Storage: What About Other Food Safety Risks? |
| title_sort | illegal nitrite treatment of red tuna and prolonged storage what about other food safety risks |
| topic | adulteration food safety nitrite tuna |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/7/3975 |
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