Nisin II

German Nisin, French Nisine, Spanish Nisina. 

Health aspects, acute toxicity. As nisin is particularly sensitive to proteolytic enzymes such as trypsin, pepsin, pancreatin, salivary enzymes and digestive enzymes (except rennet), it is metabolised in the human body into amino acids. Hence, nisin is very unlikely to be toxic to man. Additionally nisin has been present since time immemorial in milk and cheese, and likewise in streptococci, which produce nisin, are regularly present in the intestine (Gudmundsdottir, 1991 Kalra et al., 1992 Delves Broughton, 1998). 

The LD50 after oral administration (mice) corresponds to 6.9g/kg bodyweight. Dosages of up to 1 x 10 reading units/kg body weight have proved harmless to rats. Doses of 400 mg nisin/kg body weight daily under conditions of stress led to increased mortality in an 8-week feeding experiment with mice. 

The ADI-level for nisin is fixed to a maximum to 0 0.13mg/kg body weight/day by the Joint expert com- 

Applications. Nisin is permitted in some countries chiefly for the preservation of processed cheese and it is used in (fruit- and vegetable-) preserves as a sterilising auxiliary, but not in the United States or the EC. In the EC nisin can be applied in clotted cream, mascarpone, processed and ripened cheese in concentration around lOmg/kg. 

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