Academic Journal
Evolution of microbial dynamics and headspace volatile profiles for predicting the freshness-to-spoilage transition in refrigerated cooked meatballs.
| Title: | Evolution of microbial dynamics and headspace volatile profiles for predicting the freshness-to-spoilage transition in refrigerated cooked meatballs. |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Gurusamy R; Departamento de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Instituto Agroalimentario de Aragón-IA2, Universidad de Zaragoza-CITA, Calle Miguel Servet 177, 50013 Zaragoza, Spain; BSH Electrodomésticos España, S.A., Avenida de la Industria 49, 50016 Zaragoza, Spain. Electronic address: rgurusamy@unizar.es., Merino N; Departamento de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Instituto Agroalimentario de Aragón-IA2, Universidad de Zaragoza-CITA, Calle Miguel Servet 177, 50013 Zaragoza, Spain. Electronic address: merino@unizar.es., Ontañón I; Laboratorio de Análisis del Aroma y Enología (LAAE), Departamento de Química Analítica, Instituto Agroalimentario de Aragón-IA2, Universidad de Zaragoza-CITA, Calle de Pedro Cerbuna 12, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain. Electronic address: ionta@unizar.es., Alamán J; BSH Electrodomésticos España, S.A., Avenida de la Industria 49, 50016 Zaragoza, Spain. Electronic address: Jorge.Alaman@bshg.com., Pagán R; Departamento de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Instituto Agroalimentario de Aragón-IA2, Universidad de Zaragoza-CITA, Calle Miguel Servet 177, 50013 Zaragoza, Spain. Electronic address: pagan@unizar.es., Ferreira V; Laboratorio de Análisis del Aroma y Enología (LAAE), Departamento de Química Analítica, Instituto Agroalimentario de Aragón-IA2, Universidad de Zaragoza-CITA, Calle de Pedro Cerbuna 12, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain. Electronic address: vferre@unizar.es. |
| Source: | Food research international (Ottawa, Ont.) [Food Res Int] 2026 Oct 31; Vol. 242 (Pt 4), pp. 120029. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Jul 13. |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: Published on behalf of the Canadian Institute of Food Science and Technology by Elsevier Applied Science Country of Publication: Canada NLM ID: 9210143 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1873-7145 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 09639969 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Food Res Int Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada : Published on behalf of the Canadian Institute of Food Science and Technology by Elsevier Applied Science, c1992- |
| MeSH Terms: | Volatile Organic Compounds*/analysis , Food Microbiology*/methods , Meat Products*/microbiology , Meat Products*/analysis , Red Meat*/microbiology , Red Meat*/analysis , Cooking* , Refrigeration*, Aldehydes/analysis ; Animals ; Colony Count, Microbial ; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry ; Swine ; Food Quality |
| Abstract: | The present study investigates whether changes in headspace volatile organic compounds (VOCs) of refrigerated cooked meatballs (beef and pork) can predict the transition from freshness-to-spoilage driven by microbial growth. Hence, freshly prepared food samples were portioned into air-tight glass containers, stored at 6 °C, and analysed at regular intervals. Microbial growth was determined using culture-based techniques, while headspace VOCs were trapped on Tenax TA sorbent and analysed by thermal desorption heart-cut gas chromatography with flame ionisation and mass spectrometric detectors. Based on total viable counts (TVC) and the existing microbiological criteria, three food quality stages were defined: satisfactory (≤ 4 log CFU/g), acceptable (< 6 log CFU/g), and unacceptable (≥ 6 log CFU/g). All samples remained in a satisfactory stage up to 3 days, entered the acceptable region from days 4-5, and reached the unacceptable zone from day 6. TVC showed a significant positive correlation with all the microbial groups (r > 0.90, p < 0.0001). VOC profiles of fresh samples were dominated by aldehydes emitted by cooking, whereas spoiled samples contained microbially derived alcohols, acetals, esters, and sulfides. Particularly, 1,1-diethoxyethane was associated with TVC, LAB, psychrotrophs, yeasts and moulds, whereas 1-hexanol, 2,3-butanediol, sulfides and other VOCs were primarily associated with Pseudomonas. Ratios of aldehydes/1,1-diethoxyethane and aldehydes/2,3-butanediol changed dramatically from days 3-6 (Z = -22.43, p < 0.001; Z = 6.52, p < 0.001, respectively), thus emerging as potential markers indicating imminent spoilage. In contrast, hexanal/1-hexanol ratio differentiated spoilage progression from days 9-12 (Z = 52.72, p < 0.001). (Copyright © 2026. Published by Elsevier Ltd.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Cooked meatballs; Food freshness; Microbial spoilage; Shelf life; Volatile organic compounds |
| Substance Nomenclature: | 0 (Volatile Organic Compounds) 0 (Aldehydes) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260824 Date Completed: 20260824 Latest Revision: 20260824 |
| Update Code: | 20260825 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.foodres.2026.120029 |
| PMID: | 42637405 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1873-7145 |
|---|---|
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.foodres.2026.120029 |