Screening of biogenic amine production by coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated during industrial Spanish dry-cured ham processes

The potential to produce biogenic amines was investigated for 56 coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated during industrial Spanish dry-cured ham processes. The presence of biogenic amines from bacterial cultures was determined by thin-layer chromatography. The percentage of strains that decarboxylated amino acids was very low (3.6%). The only staphylococci with aminogenic capacity were an histamine-producing Staphylococcus capitis strain, and a Staphylococcus lugdunensis strain that simultaneously produced putrescine and cadaverine. In both strains, PCR was used to confirm the presence of the genes encoding the amino acid decarboxylases responsible for the synthesis of these amines. This study reveals that production of biogenic amines is not a widely distributed property among the staphylococci isolated from Spanish dry-cured hams.