Lytic Escherichia phage OSYSP acts additively and synergistically with gaseous ozone against Escherichia coli O157:H7 on spinach leaves

Bacteriophage and gaseous ozone are evolving as meritorious alternatives to conventional sanitizers in food postharvest applications. Here, we investigated the efficacy of sequential treatments of a lytic bacteriophage and gaseous ozone, during vacuum cooling of fresh produce, against Escherichia coli O157:H7. Spinach leaves were spot-inoculated with 10(5)–10(7) CFU g(−1) E. coli O157:H7 B6-914 and treated with Escherichia phage OSYSP spray (10(9) PFU g(−1)), gaseous ozone, or their combination. Vacuum cooling, which preceded or followed phage application but ran concomitantly with ozone treatment, was performed in a custom-made vessel at the following process sequence: vacuum to 28.5 in. Hg, vessel pressurization to 10 psig with gas containing 1.5 g ozone/kg gas-mix, holding for 30 min, and vessel depressurization to ambient pressure. Bacteriophage or gaseous ozone inactivated E. coli O157:H7, applied at different initial populations on spinach leaves, by 1.7–2.0 or 1.8–3.5 log CFU g(−1), respectively. At the high inoculum levels tested (7.1 log CFU g(−1)), sequential treatments of phage and ozone reduced E. coli O157:H7 population by 4.0 log CFU g(−1), but when treatment order was reversed (i.e., ozone followed by bacteriophage), the combination synergistically decreased pathogen’s population on spinach leaves by 5.2 log CFU g(−1). Regardless the antibacterial application order, E. coli O157:H7 populations, applied initially at ~ 10(5) CFU g(−1), were reduced below the enumeration method’s detection level (i.e., < 10(1) CFU g(−1)). The study proved that bacteriophage–ozone combination, applied in conjunction with vacuum cooling, is a potent pathogen intervention strategy in fresh produce post-harvest applications.