Pulsed Electric Field Treatments with Nonlethal Field Strength Alter the Properties of Bacterial Spores

Pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment, an alternative to thermal processing in the food industry, is insufficient to inactivate bacterial spores. Although spores that have been treated in this manner remain alive, specific understanding of their physiological properties is limited. The purpose of this study is to describe the morphology, viability, and germination behavior of Bacillus atrophaeus spores treated with PEF. Our findings indicate that nonlethal PEF treatment results in spore deformation, dipicolinic acid (DPA) leakage, and a shorter and more uniform germination lag time (T_lag), but that there is no change in release duration (ΔT_release), germination ratio, or viability. Based on our findings, we conclude that an intact morphologic state and DPA content are not prerequisites for germination and full viability and that, in contrast to nutrient-induced germination in which initially slowly released DPA triggers subsequent germination events, leaked DPA during PEF treatment does not. Spores that have been subjected to this procedure remain dormant and preserve their full germinability. We found that PEF-treated spores respond to germinants more quickly and with less heterogeneity, possibly because the tiny cracks formed on the spore surface facilitate the germinants' access to the germination receptors situated on the spore's inner membrane. The consensus view that nonlethal PEF has less impact on spores that are still capable of forming CFUs under proper conditions is one-sided. This research advances our understanding of how spores behave following nonlethal PEF treatment and gives information on the topics of nosocomial sterilization, food safety, and public health.