Efficacy of Hydrogen Peroxide Decontamination Against Food Pathogens on Chicken Wings and Removal by Catalase: In Vitro and Molecular Docking.

This study aims to investigate the effects of decontaminating chicken wing meat with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) at different concentrations and durations on the viability of Salmonella Typhimurium and Listeria monocytogenes, as well as the preservation of quality attributes in the chicken meat through the removal of H2O2 using the catalase enzyme. Additionally, the study aims to assess the impact of H2O2 on these pathogens through molecular docking analysis. To this end, contaminated chicken wings were submerged in different concentrations of H2O2 (5, 10, 25, 50, 100, and 250 ppm) for various durations (5, 15, 30, 45, 60, and 90 s). Following this, catalase enzyme solutions at different concentrations were used to remove H2O2. Approximately 3 log CFU/mL in rinsate samples reduction in S. Typhimurium was observed after 30 s of treatment with 250 ppm of H2O2, while L. monocytogenes counts decreased to below detectable levels after 90 s at 50 and 100 ppm and after 30 s at 250 ppm. Furthermore, it was observed that H2O2 was effectively removed by catalase enzyme treatment, and although statistically significant changes in color parameters were observed, no substantial adverse effect on overall color quality was evident. Molecular docking analysis indicated potential interactions of H2O2 with the selected target proteins under in silico conditions. The results obtained from this study suggest that such intervention strategies, applied toward the end of the processing chain before the packaging step, have potential as alternatives to other disinfectants like chlorine, which raise safety concerns.