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Chrysoula C Tassou

Chrysoula C Tassou
Hellenic Agricultural Organization DIMITRA

PhD

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153
Publications
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Publications

Publications (153)
Article
Full-text available
Lately, the inclusion of additional lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains to cheeses is becoming more popular since they can affect cheese’s nutritional, technological, and sensory properties, as well as increase the product’s safety. This work studied the effect of Lactiplantibacillus pentosus L33 and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum L125 free cells and...
Article
Full-text available
Globally, fresh vegetables or minimally processed salads have been implicated in several foodborne disease outbreaks. This work studied the effect of Lactiplantibacillus pentosus FMCC-B281 cells (F) and its supernatant (S) on spoilage and on the fate of Listeria monocytogenes and Escherichia coli O157:H7 on fresh-cut ready-to-eat (RTE) salads durin...
Article
Full-text available
The objective of this work was the isolation and characterization of Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris strains from orange juice. In all, 72 isolates were recovered from commercial orange juice bought from the Greek market. The isolates were subjected to polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) to discriminate th...
Article
Full-text available
This study examined the effects of orange juice (OJ) supplemented with vitamin D3 (2000 IU) and probiotics (Lacticaseibacillus casei Shirota and Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG, 10⁸ cfu/mL) on cardiometabolic risk factors in overweight and obese adults following a Westernized-type diet. Fifty-three high-risk individuals were randomly assigned to on...
Article
This study compared the shelf-life of beef and pork longissimus lumborum muscles (loins) that had the same initial bacterial loads and were held under the same chilled storage conditions. To identify the underlying pathways, comparisons were conducted from the perspective of the spoilage indicators; protease/lipase activity, and the volatile organi...
Poster
Full-text available
Introduction: Mixed fruit juices (FJ) may have several benefits on subjective appetite. They may curb hunger and provide sustained energy throughout the day. This study aimed to determine the effects of consuming a mixed commercial FJ (apple, orange, grape, pomegranate; FJ-control) and the same FJ fortified either with 2 probiotics strains (108 cfu...
Article
Full-text available
Feta cheese is the most recognized Greek Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) product in the world. The addition of selected autochthonous lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains to cheese milk as adjunct cultures is gaining more attention, since they can impact the nutritional, technological and sensory properties of cheeses, as well as improve the sa...
Article
The advent of high-throughput sequencing technologies in recent years has revealed the unexpected presence of genus Photobacterium within the chicken meat spoilage ecosystem. This study was undertaken to decipher the occurrence, the growth patterns and the genotypic biodiversity of Photobacterium phosphoreum on chicken breast fillets stored aerobic...
Article
Full-text available
This study aimed to determine the glycemic index (GI) of a commercial mixed fruit juice (apple, orange, grape, and pomegranate; FJ) fortified with vitamin D3 or n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) or probiotics, and their combination, and their effects on glycemic responses and salivary insulin concentrations. In a randomized controlled, double-...
Article
Full-text available
Microbial interactions play an important role in initial cell adhesion and the endurance of biofilm toward disinfectant stresses. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of microbial interactions on biofilm formation and the disinfecting activity of an innovative photocatalytic surfactant based on TiO2 nanoparticles. Listeria monocytogenes,...
Article
Full-text available
Designing stable dried functional food ingredients and foods containing live probiotic cultures maintaining high viable cell loads at the time of consumption is a challenge for the industry. The aim of the present study was the development of stable freeze-dried functional food ingredients with enhanced shelf-life during long storage. Zea flakes, p...
Article
Full-text available
Background Cheese microbiome plays a key role in determining the organoleptic and physico-chemical properties and may be also used as an authenticity tool for distinguishing probiotic cultures. Due to significant reduction of cell viability often witnessed during food production processes and storage, immobilization is proposed to ascertain high pr...
Chapter
Fermented olives contain a complex microbial consortium and include beneficial microorganisms that may contribute to the well‐being of consumers. Multifunctional cultures with probiotic properties isolated from table olives may serve as food fortifying agents or as a multifunctional starter or adjunct cultures in the fermentation of table olives. P...
Article
The purpose of this work was to investigate the population dynamics of the spores and vegetative cells of A. acidoterrestris in orange juice treated with temperature-assisted HHP and stored in different isothermal conditions. For this reason, the spores of two A. acidoterrestris strains were inoculated in commercial orange juice and subjected to HH...
Article
Full-text available
Fruit juices have an important place in humans’ healthy diet. They are considered to be shelf stable products due to their low pH that prevents the growth of most bacteria. However thermo-acidophilic endospore forming bacteria of the genus Alicyclobacillus have the potential to cause spoilage of commercially pasteurized fruit juices. The flat sour...
Article
The aim of the current study was to isolate indigenous lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from traditional Greek cheeses and assess their biochemical, technological, and functional characteristics, so as to develop novel cultures with multi-functional properties. Hence, 109 LAB isolates were recovered from traditional fresh cheeses and were evaluated in vi...
Article
Full-text available
Food fermentation has led to the improvement of the safety characteristics of raw materials and the production of new foodstuffs with elevated organoleptic characteristics. The empirical observation that these products could have a potential health benefit has garnered the attention of the scientific community. Therefore, several studies have been...
Article
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The microbiological quality and safety of food could be assessed by mapping the microorganisms present in a particular type of food [...]
Article
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Lactobacillus is a diverse genus that includes species of industrial and biomedical interest. Lactiplantibacillus pentosus , formerly known as Lactobacillus pentosus , is a recently reclassified species, that contains strains isolated from diverse environmental niches, ranging from fermented products to mammalian gut microbiota. Importantly, severa...
Article
Full-text available
The present study concerns the serious issue of biodeterioration of the caves belonging to natural and cultural heritage sites due to the development of various microorganisms. Thus, a series of 18 essential oils (EOs) extracted from various Greek plants were evaluated in vitro (concentrations of 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, 1.0 and 5.0% v/v) against 35 bacteria...
Article
Full-text available
The current study aimed to explore the performance of a probiotic Lactobacillus strain as an adjunct culture in yogurt production and to assess Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy as a rapid, noninvasive analytical technique to evaluate the quality and the shelf life of yogurt during storage. In this respect, bovine milk (full-fat) was inoculat...
Article
Full-text available
Recent research has expanded our understanding on vineyard-associated fungal community assembly, suggesting non-random distribution and implicating regional differences in the wine terroir effect. Here, we focused on the culturable fraction of the fungal community that resides on grapes and determine wine quality, the so-called wine yeast populatio...
Article
Chicken is one of the most widely consumed meats worldwide. The exploration of the bacterial diversity of chicken meat may provide new insights into the chicken-associated microbiome that will lead to moderation of food spoilage or safety. This study was undertaken to explore the bacterial communities of chicken breast and thigh fillets stored at r...
Article
Full-text available
Chicken liver is a highly perishable meat product with a relatively short shelf-life and that can get easily contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms. This study was conducted to evaluate the behavior of spoilage microbiota and of inoculated Salmonella enterica on chicken liver. The feasibility of Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) t...
Chapter
The colonization of microbial association on naturally fermented olives (black or green) is of great importance for the successful outcome of the process ensuring the safety and quality of the final product. Table olive elaboration is a well-established process based on traditional methods where the olives and environmental conditions are properly...
Article
Full-text available
Anigrides Nymphes of Lake Kaiafas is a thermal spring that is well known for its therapeutical properties, as the hot water (32–34 °C) is rich in sulfur compounds and minerals. Nowadays, efforts are made from the Hellenic Republic to modernize the existing facilities and infrastructure networks of the area. To study the complex ecosystem of the the...
Article
In this work, the inactivation kinetics of Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris spores by temperature-assisted high hydrostatic pressure was assessed by means of the Weibull model. Spores from two A. acidoterrestris strains (a wild-type strain and a reference strain) were inoculated in commercial orange juice and subjected to high pressure levels (500...
Article
Full-text available
Aims: In previous work, following a pressure treatment of S. aureus wild type, we obtained piezotolerant isolates showing altered phenotypic characteristics. This work focuses on understanding the genetic background of their altered phenotype. Methods and results: AK23, a representative piezotolerant isolate was subjected to DNA microarrays, cor...
Article
Current information from conventional microbiological methods on the microbial diversity of table olives is insufficient. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies allow comprehensive analysis of their microbial community, providing microbial identity of table olive varieties and their designation of origin. The purpose of this study was to eva...
Article
Full-text available
The aim of the present study was to investigate the evolution of the volatile compounds of aerobically stored sterile pork meat as a consequence of the metabolic activities of inoculated specific spoilage microorganisms. Thus, Pseudomonas fragi, Pseudomonas putida, Lactobacillus sakei and Leuconostoc mesenteroides were inoculated in monocultures, d...
Article
Full-text available
Autochthonous Saccharomyces cerevisiae vineyard populations are important components of the grape/wine system. Besides their direct impact on winemaking, they also constitute an untapped reservoir of genotypes with special technological attributes for the wine industry. Research so far on S. cerevisiae populations has focused on spatial distributio...
Article
Full-text available
The aim of this study was to investigate on an industrial scale the potential of multispectral imaging (MSI) in the assessment of the quality of different poultry products. Therefore, samples of chicken breast fillets, thigh fillets, marinated souvlaki and burger were subjected to MSI analysis during production together with microbiological analysi...
Article
The aim of the present study was to assess the influence of ripening container's material on the bacterial diversity of Feta cheese PDO (Protected Designation of Origin). The microbiota of fresh and mature cheese produced in plastic and stainless steel container was monitored by microbial enumeration and 16s rRNA gene sequencing. According to the o...
Article
Full-text available
The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of oregano essential oil (OEO) incorporated in Na-alginate edible films when applied to sliced ham inoculated with a cocktail of Listeria monocytogenes strains, with or without pretreatment by high pressure processing (HPP). Microbiological, physicochemical and sensory analyses (in Listeria-free sli...
Article
Full-text available
The effect of high-pressure processing (HPP) on Listeriamonocytogenes, the indigenous microbiota and the shelf-life of chicken fillets was evaluated. Chicken fillets were inoculated with different inocula (2, 4, and 6 log CFU/g) of a 4-strain cocktail of L. monocytogenes, vacuum-packed, processed or not with HPP (500 MPa/10 min) and stored at 4 °C...
Article
The performance of the Lactobacillus plantarum L125 strain with probiotic potential, previously isolated from a traditional Greek fermented sausage, was assessed as an adjunct culture for the production of dry-fermented pork sausages. The probiotic was added in the meat batter with the commercial starter cultures and the microbial populations were...
Article
Full-text available
Multi-starter wine fermentations employing non-Saccharomyces (NS) yeasts are becoming an emerging trend in winemaking. It is therefore important to determine the impacts of different NS strains in the wine phenotype and in particular the aroma outputs in different inoculation schemes and fermentation conditions. Here, two native NS yeasts, Lachance...
Article
UHT bovine milk (low-fat) was inoculated with a starter culture and one adjunct strain, Lactobacillus plantarum 2035 or Lb. plantarum T571, with probiotic potential, and also with a cocktail mixture of three strains of Listeria monocytogenes at three different initial levels of inoculum and the milk was fermented to pH 4.5. Microbiological, physico...
Article
Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris is considered to be one of the most important target microorganisms in quality control of heat-processed acidic foods. This species can cause spoilage by forming spores with very high heat resistance; however, no gas production or visible changes occur in the contaminated product during storage. Thus, the differenti...
Conference Paper
Full-text available
The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of environmental factors (temperature and aw) on the germination, growth and toxin production (ochratoxin A & aflatoxins) of two common mycotoxigenic fungi on wheat and rice grains obtained from the Greek market. Fungal species, namely Aspergillus carbonarius and A. flavus, were selected with...
Article
Full-text available
According to the World Health Organization estimates in 2015, 600 million people fall ill every year from contaminated food and 420,000 die. Microbial risk assessment (MRA) was developed as a tool to reduce and prevent risks presented by pathogens and/or their toxins. MRA is organized in four steps to analyse information and assist in both designin...
Article
The aim of the study was to investigate the performance of Lactobacillus plantarum T571 with probiotic potential as a co-starter culture in Feta cheese production and in its long-term storage. For this reason, Feta cheese was manufactured without (control) or with the probiotic T571 strain (probiotic) and then monitored during storage at 4 and 12 °...
Article
Full-text available
Nowadays, the consumption of food products containing probiotics, has increased worldwide due to concerns regarding healthy diet and wellbeing. This trend has received a lot of attention from the food industries, aiming to produce novel probiotic foods, and from researchers, to improve the existing methodologies for probiotic delivery or to develop...
Article
Full-text available
Survival during transit through the gastrointestinal track, intestinal mucosa adhesion, and a potential immunomodulatory effect of Lactobacillus plantarum strains 2035 and ACA-DC 2640 were investigated in a rat model. According to microbiological and multiplex PCR analysis, both strains were detected in feces 24 h after either single-dose or daily...
Article
Full-text available
The aim of the present work was to evaluate the efficacy of Na-alginate edible films as vehicles for delivering probiotic bacteria to sliced ham with or without pretreatment using high pressure processing (HPP). Three strains of probiotic bacteria were incorporated in Na-alginate forming solution. Ham slices (with or without pretreatment using HPP...
Article
High pressure processing (HPP) is a preservation technology alternative to heat treatment that is mild for food, but effectively inactivates the spoilage microbiota and foodborne pathogens of several foods. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effect of HPP on Salmonella ser. Enteritidis, indigenous microbiota and shelf-life of chic...
Chapter
One of the most important commercial preparations of table olives in the international market is natural black olives in brine. Table olives are fruits with high nutritional and functional value. Apart from their nutritional value, olives also contain secondary compounds, such as phenolics, tocopherols, and triterpenes, which are frequently attribu...
Article
Full-text available
Table olives are one of the most popular plant-derived fermented products. Their enhanced nutritional value due to the presence of phenolic compounds and monounsaturated fatty acids makes olives an important food commodity of the Mediterranean diet. However, despite its economic significance, table olive fermentation is mainly craft-based and empir...
Conference Paper
Introduction: Recent reports rank Salmonella as one of top four pathogens associated with foodborne illnesses. Although salmonellosis is often related to animal-origin food products, reports of Salmonella outbreaks related to plant-origin and low water activity foods are increasing. Purpose: To evaluate the presence of Salmonella in sesame intended...
Article
Τhe aim of the present study was to evaluate the production of probiotic yoghurts using immobilized cells of Lactobacillus plantarum 2035 on whey protein along with a commercial culture. For comparison reasons, yoghurts with free L. plantarum 2035 cells and with no probiotic culture were also prepared. All products using either bovine or ewe's milk...
Chapter
Table olives are considered as the most economically important fermented vegetable in the western world, with an increasing rate of production and consumption throughout the last years. In the last decade, a considerable research effort has been undertaken to transform table olives-a traditional fermented food- into a promising functional food that...
Poster
Full-text available
Recent studies showed that several Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) strains isolated from naturally fermented table olives display probiotic potential (Argyri et al. 2013). Amongst them, two strains, namely Lactobacillus pentosus B281 and Lactobacillus plantarum B282 display significant potential for the production of novel probiotic food products (Argyr...
Conference Paper
Introduction: Salmonella is one of the most important causes of foodborne outbreaks and diseases. Although salmonellosis is often related to animal origin food products, reports of Salmonella outbreaks related to plant origin foods are increasing. Purpose: To evaluate the presence of Salmonella in plant-origin food products mainly imported to Greec...
Conference Paper
Introduction: Natural marination ingredients and High Pressure Processing (HPP) during manufacturing of meat products may extend their shelf life and improve their microbiological safety. Purpose: To investigate the antimicrobial effect of HPP, in combination with natural marinades, against Listeria monocytogenes in a ready-to-eat, cooked pork meat...
Conference Paper
Introduction: Salmonella is one of the most important causes of foodborne outbreaks and diseases. Although salmonellosis is often related to animal origin food products, reports of Salmonella outbreaks related to plant origin foods are increasing. Purpose: To evaluate the presence of Salmonella in plant-origin food products mainly imported to Greec...
Conference Paper
Introduction: Natural marination ingredients and High Pressure Processing (HPP) during manufacturing of meat products may extend their shelf life and improve their microbiological safety. Purpose: To investigate the antimicrobial effect of HPP, in combination with natural marinades, against Listeria monocytogenes in a ready-to-eat, cooked pork meat...
Article
Full-text available
A molecular method for efficient and accurate detection and identification of two potential probiotic lactobacilli strains isolated from fermented olives, namely Lactobacillus pentosus B281 and Lb. plantarum B282, was developed in the present study. Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis was performed, and strain specific primers were des...
Article
The aim of the present study was to evaluate the probiotic potential of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from Greek traditional fermented products. A series of in vitro tests that included survival in simulated gastrointestinal conditions (resistance to low pH, bile salts resistance and bile salts hydrolysis) and safety assessment (resistance to...
Poster
Full-text available
Lactobacillus pentosus B281 and Lactobacillus plantarum B282 are lactic acid bacteria, newly isolated from naturally fermented olives and have been studied for their probiotic potential through several in vitro tests. The aim of the present study was to investigate the antiproliferative effect of the conditioned media from the above strains on canc...
Article
Full-text available
Lactobacillus plantarum 2035 and Lactobacillus plantarum ACA-DC 2640 are two lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains that have been isolated from Feta cheese. Both display significant potential for the production of novel probiotic food products. The aim of the present study was the development of an accurate and efficient method for the molecular detec...
Article
The survival of selected lactic acid bacteria (LAB) with in vitro probiotic potential was studied during storage of cv. Halkidiki green olives previously subjected to inoculated Spanish-style fermentation. After fermentation olives were packed in polyethylene pouches, covered with freshly prepared brine (9%, w/v, NaCl), acidified with 2‰ (w/v) citr...
Article
The yeast Candida zemplinina (Starmerella bacillaris) is frequently isolated from grape and wine environments. Its enological use in mixed fermentation with S. cerevisiae has been extensively investigated these last years, and several interesting features, including low ethanol production, fructophily, glycerol and other metabolites production, hav...
Conference Paper
Lactobacillus pentosus B281 and Lactobacillus plantarum B282 are two Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) strains that have been isolated recently from fermented olives. Both display significant potential for the production of novel probiotic food products. The aim of this study was the development of a rapid and effective method for the molecular detection...
Article
Full-text available
Vineyard- and winery-associated lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from two major PDO regions in Greece, Peza and Nemea, were surveyed. LAB were isolated from grapes, fermenting musts, and winery tanks performing spontaneous malolactic fermentations (MLF). Higher population density and species richness were detected in Nemea than in Peza vineyards and on g...