Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

Therapeutics & Vaccines
Therapeutics Vaccines
Development of Food-Grade Fungal Fermentates with Antimicrobial Activity
WARF: P180291WO01

Inventors: Jaehyuk Yu, Ahmad Alshannaq, Dasol Choi


The Invention
The present invention relates to a ‘sugar fermentate of edible fungi’ (i.e., cultures of GRAS species from the genus Aspergillus) that exhibits antimicrobial activity (e.g., against Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, MRSA, and the yeast Candida albicans). The inventors cultured each of several strains of two Aspergillus species (A. oryzae and A. sojae) in liquid culture medium (6-9 days, 25 degrees C) and filtered the product to obtain a cell free fermentate that the inventors call ‘NP’ (for ‘Natural Preservative’). The liquid medium and the Aspergillus species are GRAS, so NP could be used directly as a food additive or in environmental or topical applications, or the composition could be lyophilized for use in powdered form, or extracts could be produced, such as the ethyl acetate extract that the inventors applied to disks in an agar disk diffusion assay to assess antimicrobial properties.
Applications
  • Food applications
  • Activity across a variety of harmful microbes
  • Topical and surface applications
Key Benefits
  • Potential GRAS status and "clean label"
  • Food and surface applications
  • Effective against Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, MRSA, and the yeast Candida albicans
Additional Information
For More Information About the Inventors
For current licensing status, please contact Mark Staudt at [javascript protected email address] or 608-960-9845

WARF