Ethanol adaptation in foodborne bacterial pathogens.

Foodborne pathogens possess the ability to develop adaptive responses to sublethal environmental stresses, leading to increased tolerance to homologous or heterologous stressing agents commonly applied during food manufacturing. This phenomenon may counteract the effectiveness of current intervention strategies to ensure food safety, thus increasing consumer risk. Foodborne pathogens encounter ethanol, a common food component and a widely used food processing agent, in a variety of niches during their life cycles. The present contribution provides an overview of the influence of adaptation to sublethal doses of ethanol on the stress tolerance of major foodborne pathogens (e.g.