Synergistic principle of catalytic infrared and intense pulsed light for bacteriostasis on green sichuan pepper (Zanthoxylum schinifolium).

A combined method of catalytic infrared (CIR) and intense pulsed light (PL) was investigated to settle a dispute of bacteriostasis on green Sichuan pepper (GSP), and the synergistic principle was elucidated from several aspects. The synergistic bacteriostasis was confirmed first on GSP by the plate counting method. On bacterial cells, leakage of cytoplasmic contents, intracellular protein and DNA breakages were investigated, and the difference between CIR and PL indicated the possibility of synergism. On a single bacterium, the expected synergy was not achieved on the plate but was obtained on GSP, and the bacterial cells treated by the combined method were mainly broken under SEM, indicating that the alliance technology could increase the damage of PL to bacterial cells on the rough surface of GSP. On multiple bacteria, synergy was obtained similarly, and the bacterial community on GSP was investigated with high-throughput sequencing. The community composition on GSP could be changed by the treatments. In conclusion, synergistic bacteriostasis on GSP was achieved by a combined method of CIR and PL, originating from a complementary effect on the microbiome and a promotion of bacteriostatic capacity on rough surfaces. These findings are expected to solve the bacteriostatic difficulty of spices with rough surfaces and have important implications for the development of effective bacteriostatic strategies in food preservation. • A combined CIR-PL conception was developed for bacteriostasis on rough surface. • A synergistic principle came from the promotion on rough surface by CIR pretreatment. • Another synergistic principle was interpreted based on microbiome complementarily. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]