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From: mel@niblick.ecn.purdue.edu (Meloney D Cregor)
Newsgroups: sci.bio
Subject: Re: SALTPETER (NITRATES), CORNED BEEF, & BOTULISM
Message-ID: <1990Nov14.151042.23722@noose.ecn.purdue.edu>
Date: 14 Nov 90 15:10:42 GMT
References: <1990Nov12.152122.15466@godot.RadOnc.UNC.EDU> <7094@rnd.GBA.NYU.EDU>
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In article <7094@rnd.GBA.NYU.EDU> sbhattac@rnd.gba.nyu.edu (Shankar Bhattacharyya) writes:
>In article <1990Nov12.152122.15466@godot.RadOnc.UNC.EDU> tracton@godot.radonc.unc.edu () writes:
>
>> ...... I wonder (and I bet that
>>Shankar can answer this), does the Botulism grow during the curing
>>stage or during the storage stage (post-curing)? Can it be killed off
>>by boiling for 2-3 hours? IF Botulism can live in a saline solution
>>which is "strong enough to float an egg" at 40 degrees F, can it also
>>live in a very dilute solution at boiling tempuratures?
>
>You would lose that bet. I don't know anything about the microbiology
>end of things. The little I know came from casual conversations with
>microbiologists, and is only slightly more than one picks up while walking
>past the appropriate section at the bookstore.
>
>For what little it is worth, I seem to remember that the botulinum bug
>produces a protein toxin which is not denatured at the boil, and so the
>toxin can affect you even if the bug itself is killed.
>
>This is speculative recall from relatively volatile areas of memory. I
>trust that some microbiologically informed soul will clarify this. I am
>curious about it.

Well, if I can remember from my micro days...

Fifteen minutes of boiling at 100C will not only kill the bug, but denature
the toxin as well. This is why they caution you to always boil canned foods
at least 15 minutes.

If my memory does not serve, I will welcome edification from someone more
current in the field.
--
Mel Cregor Black Belt, 5th Dan, Zen Power Flirting.
"Too much of a good thing is wonderful!" - Mae West