Antibacterial nisin

Nisin, also known as lacticin or transliterated as nisin, is a polypeptide substance produced by nisin, composed mainly of 34 amino acid residues with a molecular weight of about 3500 Da. This substance plays a significant role in the food industry as it can inhibit most Gram-positive bacteria and has a strong inhibitory effect on the spores of Bacillus, making it widely used as a food preservative.

For beverages and condiments, nisin also exhibits excellent applicability. It can effectively prevent the spoilage of these foods during production and storage due to microbial contamination. Especially in beverages, since nisin's solubility in water is affected by pH, it can provide good preservative effects in beverages of different pH values. In condiments, its good thermal stability ensures that the preservative effect is maintained under high-temperature processing or storage conditions.

Furthermore, under physiological pH conditions in the human body and the action of α-chymotrypsin, nisin quickly hydrolyzes into amino acids, not affecting the normal flora in the human intestine, nor does it produce resistance issues like other antibiotics might. Therefore, it is considered an efficient, non-toxic, safe, and side-effect-free natural food preservative.

The preservative nisin is suitable for beverages and condiments, effectively extending the shelf life of these foods while ensuring their safety and quality. However, when used, it is still necessary to add it in appropriate amounts and adjust and optimize according to the specific production processes and storage conditions of the products.