Introduction: Recently, there has been growing demand for the fabrication of edible antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds for the monitoring of foodborne bacterial diseases, which are mainly responsible for the contamination of Raw foodstuffs. The present study aimed to use polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) enriched with garlic extract to control Listeria monocytogenes (LM) and Staphylococcus aureus (SA) in fresh Sheep Meat at over-chilled temperature for one week. Methods: The obtained minced Meat were divided into 100-gram portions, inoculated with SA and LM (7 log CFU/g), aseptically packed in designated PVP containing garlic extract (0%, 0. 25%, and 0. 5%), and transferred to a sterile polyethylene bag. All the samples were stored at refrigerated temperature for one week. Results: PVP enriched with garlic extract at the concentrations of 0. 25% and 0. 5% could decrease the LM and SA counts to 2. 30-2. 82 and 2. 51-1. 36 log CFU/g, respectively (P<0. 05). Conclusion: According to the results, PVP containing garlic extract at the concentrations of 0. 25% and 0. 5% exerted inhibitory effects against LM and SA in Raw Sheep Meat.

Background & Objectives: Campylobacter jejuni is a Gram negative, microaerophilic, non-spore-forming and a small curved bacillus which is able to cause foodborne infection in human. In this study the occurrence of C. jejuni in poultry and beef Meat was investigated.Materials & Methods: Forty Raw Meat samples including 22 poultry samples and 18 beef samples were investigated for the presence of C. jejuni. To isolate the bacterium, the samples were initially enriched in Preston Broth medium and subsequently transferred to Campylobacter selective Agar containing defibrinated Sheep blood and antibiotics. The biochemical tests were used for identification of isolated bacteria at species level. Results: Three poultry samples were positive for C. jejuni.  Conclusion: Alimentary tract of chickens contain high numbers of C. jejuni therefore, this bacterium can be easily found in their feces. It is recommended to use chlorinated water in birds’ feed and to perform slaughtering, skinning and evisceration under aseptic conditions to prevent campylobacteriosis in human from poultry Meat. None of the beef samples yielded any Campylobacter; this may be due to limited number of samples of beef Meat analyzed in this study.

Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) of the O157: H7 serotype is a worldwide zoonotic pathogen responsible for the majority of severe cases of human EHEC disease. The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of E. coli O157: H7/NM in Raw Meat samples from two provinces of Iran. During a period from March 2010 to March 2011. Two hundred and ninety five Raw Meat samples were collected from beef (n=85), camel, (n=50), Sheep (n=62), goat (n=60), and water buffalo (n=38). Fourteen (4.7%) of the 295 samples were positive for E. coli O157. The highest prevalence of E. coli O157 was found in beef samples (8.2%), followed by water buffalo (5.3%), Sheep (4.8%), camel (2.0%), and goat (1.7%). Of fourteen E. coli O157 isolates, only one was determined to be serotype O157: H7 while 13 were determined as serotype O157: NM. Of the 14 E. coli O157: H7/NM isolates, one, four, two, and one strains were positive for stx1, stx2, eaeA and ehlyA genes, respectively. The prevalence of this organism varied between seasons with the highest prevalence of E. coli O157 occurring in summer (9.3%). The results of this study showed that beef and water buffalo Meat are a significant source for human EHEC E. coli O157: H7/NM infection in Iran. The data reported in this study provides some useful baseline in formation for future research such as molecular or epidemiologic works.

Introduction: Campylobacter jejuni and C. coli are among the most common causes of acute bacterial enteritis disease in human throughout the world. The veterinary use of antimicrobial drugs has been suggested to be largely responsible for resistance in human isolates of this zoonotic pathogen.Materials and Methods: This study was conducted to determine the antimicrobial resistance pattern of Campylobacter spp. isolated from retail Raw Meats in Shahrekord, Iran. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing for 193 C. jejuni and 20 C. coli isolated strains from Raw chicken, turkey, quail, partridge, ostrich, beef, Sheep, goat and camel Meat samples were performed by disc diffusion method according to the Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute.Results: Overall, 191 of 214 Campylobacter isolates (89.3%) were resistant to one or more antimicrobial agent. Thirty six strains (19.3%), 64 strains (34.2%) and 84 strains (44.9%) of Campylobacter strains were resistant to single, two and three or more of drug tested, respectively. Resistance to tetracycline was the most common finding (72.4%), followed by resistance to nalidixic acid (48.6%) and ciprofloxacin (40.2%). All Campylobacter isolates were susceptible to gentamicin and one of the Campylobacter coli isolated from chicken and turkey Meat samples was resistant to chloramphenicol and erythromycin, respectively.Conclusion: Due to the increased reports concerned with the antimicrobial resistance of Campylobacter worldwide, attempts should be made to control the use of antimicrobial drugs in animal husbandry.

Sheep Meat is one of the most important sources of red Meat in middle-east countries and therefore having knowledge of its quality is necessary. The physicho-chemical characteristics of Sheep Meat were studied during 7 days of ageing period. Samples were taken from the top round section including Biceps femoris and Semimembranosus muscles. Meat pH fell significantly during the first 24 h postmortem, reaching the mean value of 5.67±0.06. No significant changes (P<0.05) were observed during the next 6 days. With increasing ageing duration, water holding capacity (WHC) and cooking loss increased significantly (P<0.05) indicating the changes in water characteristics during the cooking process. The changes in the inner temperature profile during cooking were similar for all days after slaughter. However, the total time needed for cooking process was significantly (P<0.05) higher at 24 h post slaughter. The results showed that the ageing process improved the tenderness, juiciness and flavor scores in both sexes. There was a positive and significant correlation between the sensory attributes and total acceptance scores. No difference was observed between sexes for any of these attributes.

The potential of extracts prepared from seeds of three citrus species (orange, lemon and grapefruit) to stabilize lipid oxidation of cooked and Raw broiler Meat under refrigeration storage was evaluated and compared with butylated hydroxyl anisole (BHA), a synthetic antioxidant. The citrus seed extracts were separately applied at a rate of 1.5% of the weight of the Meat. There was a negative control without any additive and a positive control with 0.01% of BHA. Each sample was divided into 28 parts of 12.5 g each. Fourteen of these were cooked in microwave oven for 1½ minutes while the other 14 samples were left Raw. Both cooked and Raw samples were stored in a refrigerator for 12 days at a temperature of 4 0C. Oxidative stability of the cooked and Raw samples was monitored at 2 day intervals using the Thiobarbituric acid (TBA) assay. The result shows that all the additives and BHA were able to reduce lipid oxidation in broiler Meat than the negative control. Addition of citrus seed extract was effective in reducing lipid oxidation in both cooked and Raw broiler Meat under refrigeration. Thus, oxidative stability of chicken Meat can be prolonged for 12 days with citrus seed extracts under refrigeration storage.