Histamine formation by enterococci isolated from home-made goat cheeses.

A survey was made of the histamine-producing capability of enterococci isolated from goat cheeses. The strains, 130 Streptococcus faecium and 106 S. faecalis, were grown in Trypticase Soy Broth Histidine medium (TSBH) at 35 degrees C for 24 h and the histamine formed was determined by fluorometry. Forty-one (31.5%) of the S. faecium strains and 2 (1.9%) of the S. faecalis strains produced histamine. The largest amount detected was 4.0 micrograms histamine/ml TSBH. Compared with the amounts of histamine produced by some Gram-negative bacteria, the histamine production by enterococci seems to be low. Under the present conditions the enterococci seem to have no relevance from a histamine intoxication point of view.