Abstract:
Bacillus cereus (B. cereus) is a common contaminant and spoilage organism in the dairy industry. Its ubiquitous nature, and ability to form sticky heat resistant spores allow it to be a persistent nuisance; and a constant challenge in several areas of the dairy production process. Because B. cereus spores are resistant to the most common food preservation practices (such as pasteurization and desiccation) an alternate method of reducing the bioburden caused by this organism could help reduce contamination and subsequent spoilage and/or foodborne illness caused by B. cereus. Biocontrol using bacteriophages is the practice of intentionally introducing phages to an environment in order to reduce the number of bacterial cells. Often times, several different phages that target the same host are mixed together in what is called a cocktail. This study was intended to characterize the genetic composition and morphology of a phage isolated from raw milk. Further study would then be done to determine if the phage was a feasible candidate for a phage cocktail that could be used to treat milk for Bacillus cereus. Due to technical difficulties, and limited time and resources, we were unable to isolate quality phage DNA for sequencing, nor were we able to characterize the phage morphologically through electron microscopy in the two year timespan. The project was inherited by an incoming student, who has since been working on sequencing, and host range and phage sensitivity (outlined in future directions), as well as sequencing of the genome.
