Role of spore germination proteins in determining risk of foodborne illness

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The food industry expends a lot of effort in reducing risk posed by spore forming bacteria. Preventing germination of spores is one of the key goals. However if germination occurs, the time to germination is variable. Germination proteins are formed during porulation and sequestered in the spore membrane. Germination occurs when these proteins are activated by diffusion of germinant molecules. Our working hypothesis is that germination time is directly proportional to the number of germination proteins in the spore. The correlation between these processes can be exploited for estimating risks.

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