The effect of marination on the growth of enterotoxigenic Staph. aureus and
its enterotoxins artificially inoculated into broiler chicken breast fillets was
investigated. Fresh broiler chicken breast fillets were artificially inoculated with
enterotoxigenic Staph. aureus with infective dose ~ 10
6
cfu/ml (6 log cfu/ml). Initial
count of Staph. aureus immediately after inoculation was 9.01 log cfu/g. Inoculated
samples were dipped in three marinades: lactic acid, soy sauce and lemon juice for 48
hrs and at a ratio of 1.5:1 (marinade : breast chicken fillet, ml/g). Sterile distilled water
was used as control. All the samples as well as the control samples were stored at 4
o
C
and examined at 0, 4, 8, 12, 24, 36, and 48 hrs for sensory analysis (color , odor and
texture), Staph. aureus count and enterotoxins of Staph. aureus (sea, seb, sec and sed)
by using multiplex PCR. The samples marinated in lemon juice for 48 hrs revealed the
highest improvement of sensory attributes, while those treated with lactic acid for 24
hrs demonstrated the lowest one. Lactic acid, soy sauce and lemon juice marinades
caused significant decrease in viable count of Staph. aureus during marination at 4
o
C
for 48 hrs by 3.13 log cfu/g (34.59%), 4.43 log cfu/g (48.95%) and 8.10 log cfu/g
(89.50%), respectively, compared to that of control samples which decreased only by
2.35 log cfu/g (25.97%). Moreover, significant differences (P