Effects of kimchi extract and temperature on embryostasis of Ascaris suum eggs

Abstract

To determine the effects of kimchi extracts at different temperatures on larval development, Ascaris suum eggs were mixed with soluble part of 7 different brands of commercially available kimchi and preserved at either 5 °C or 25 °C for up to 60 days. A. suum eggs incubated at 25 °C showed marked differences in larval development between kimchi extract and control group. While all eggs in the control group completed embryonation by day 21, only 30% of the eggs in the kimchi extract group became embryonated by day 36 and about 25% never became larvated even at day 60. At 5 °C, however, none of the eggs showed larval development regardless of the incubation period or type of mixture group. To determine the survival rate of A. suum eggs that showed no embryonation after being preserved at 5 °C, eggs preserved in kimchi extracts for 14, 28, and 60 at 5 °C were re-incubated at 25 °C for 3 weeks in distilled water. While all eggs in the control group became larvated, eggs in the kimchi extract group showed differences in their embryonation rates by the incubation period; 87.4% and 41.7% of the eggs became embryonated after being refrigerated for 14 days and 28 days, respectively. When refrigerated for 60 days, however, no eggs mixed in kimchi extract showed larval development. Our results indicate that embryogenesis of A. suum eggs in kimchi extract was affected by duration of refrigeration, and that all eggs stopped larval development completely in kimchi kept at 5 °C for up to 60 days. © 2012, Korean Society for Parasitology.