Adhesion and removal of dormant, heat-activated, and germinated spores of three strains of Bacillus cereus

As the spores of Bacillus cereus are known to be very adhesive, the cleaning processes used to eliminate them are often inefficient. This study investigated how adhesion and removal of spores varied among strains of the species B. cereus. The adhesion and removal of spores during their life cycle were also examined. Spores of three different strains of B. cereus, viz. NVH 61, IAM 1110 and NCTC 2599, were used. IAM 1110 spores adhered in greater numbers than spores of the other two strains and were the most hydrophobic; four times as many spores of this strain adhered than of the least adhesive sports, NCTC 2599. Spores of both these strains have an exosporium and appendages, but as the relative hydrophobicity varies, there are probably differences in their chemical composition. It was also found that dormant spores were 33-48% more adhesive than germinated spores. There were no obvious differences in adhesion between dormant and heat-activated spores. Up to 80% of the germinated sports could be removed from the surfaces tested. Dormant and heat-activated spores on the other hand were difficult to remove from the surfaces. When siliconized glass surfaces were coated with milk, germinated spores were still the easiest to remove but the difference was not as marked as before. Therefore, this work suggests that cleaning processes should take into consideration factors that boost spore germination in order to improve the cleaning.