Inactivation Kinetics of Spores of Bacillus cereus Strains Treated by a Peracetic Acid-Based Disinfectant at Different Concentrations and Temperatures

The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of a commercial peracetic acid-based disinfectant against spores of Bacillus cereus, to identify the most influential factor for the final number of microorganisms after different disinfection procedures, and to evaluate the nature of the inactivation kinetics. The spores of four different strains of B. cereus (DSM 318, 4312, 4313, and 4384) were treated with five different disinfectant concentrations (0.25%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5%, and 2.0% [w/v]) at three different temperatures (10 degrees C, 15 degrees C, and 20 degrees C) with or without protein load. A higher temperature and PES 15/23 concentration resulted in a higher inactivation. Inactivation of B. cereus strain 4312 was around 2 log(10) cycles at 10 degrees C and around 7 log(10) at 20 degrees C (conc = 1% [w/v] PAA; t = 60 min; without protein). The protein load at higher concentrations did not significantly reduce the efficacy of the disinfectant (p > 0.05). This article indicates the applicability of the Weibull model to fit the B. cereus disinfectant survival curves. A Monte Carlo simulation was used to carry out a sensitivity analysis, which revealed the most influential factors affecting the final number of microorganisms after the disinfection process.