Determination of ATP-related compounds by HPLC to study the effect of cell-free supernatants of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum on the shelf life of sliced dry-cured ham

This research aimed to study the evolution of ATP-related compounds in dry-cured ham and to assess their suitability as chemical markers of food contamination. A rapid high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was developed for the analysis of five ATP-related compounds namely, ATP, ADP, AMP, hypoxanthine, and Ino in sliced dry-cured ham. Moreover, a positive correlation between ATP content and microbial load was found in ham during storage. In addition, the method developed herein was employed to quantify ATP-related compounds in sliced dry-cured ham wrapped in a novel antibacterial packaging film containing the cell-free supernatant (CFS) of a probiotic Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strain. The contents of ATP-related compounds in ham samples wrapped in the antibacterial packaging film were lower than in control samples during the 7 days of storage (181 vs 269 mg/kg on day 2; 247 vs 286 mg/kg on day 5; 272 vs 297 mg/kg on day 7). Thus, the evaluated CFS could be considered in packaging material applications for the preservation of sliced ham. This study presents an effective method to assess the quality of sliced ham, which might also contribute to the adoption of active packaging in the food industry.