A comparative study of tea polyphenols and its palmitic acid-modified derivatives: their effects on the microbial ecosystem and biogenic amines in Chinese sausage

Control of biogenic amines (BAs) is important to guarantee the safety of sausage-like fermented meat products. This study investigated the influences of tea polyphenols (TP) and its lipophilic palmitic acid-modified derivatives, palmitoyl-TP (pTP) and palmitoyl-epigallocatechin gallate (pEGCG), on BAs and microbial ecosystem in Chinese sausages. TP, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), pTP, and pEGCG all reduced the formation of BAs and N -nitrosodimethylamine at 0.05% (g/g); yet, compared with TP and EGCG, the modified derivatives exhibited stronger action on BAs decreasing ( P < 0.05), and pEGCG showed the highest effect (a reduction of total BAs from 376.22 to 168.98 mg/kg compared to control). The improved inhibitory effect of pTP and pEGCG should be attributed to their stronger dual-directional regulation of the bacterial and fungal communities during the natural fermentation of sausage. The modified pTP and pEGCG highly suppressed the growth of Staphylococcus , Candida, and Kurtzmaniella , all of which were positively correlated with BAs formation (all P < 0.05). However, pTP and pEGCG worked more effectively than the unmodified ones to promote Lactobacillus , Lactococcus , and Debaryomyces (all P < 0.05). The results above are significant for the application of palmitoyl-TP and similar TP derivatives in meat products in consideration of food safety.