Action of benzalkonium chloride in different pH

Abstract

ABSTRACT Ammonium quaternary compounds are widely used in poultry and swine production as disinfectants in the control of pathogens. They act on gram-positive bacteria, gram-negative bacteria, enveloped fungi and viruses. However, in some conditions of pH and presence of organic matter can be inactivated. This study evaluated the action of ammonium quaternary compounds at 1:1,000 and 1:2,000 dilutions against Salmonella enterica serovarTyphimurium and Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis in the presence of three different organic matter simulators, fetal bovine serum, skim milk and whole milk concentration of 1, 3, 5, and 7% and at pH 6 and 9, with 15 min of contact. It was possible to verify that the organic matter simulators adjusted in the same conditions of contact time and percentage, in the in vitro tests, presented different results and the fetal bovine serum did not inactivate the disinfectant. However, the best result against S. Typhimurium and S. Enteritidis was obtained at pH 6 at the dilution of 1:1,000 in all organic matter simulators.