Effect of essential oil from pomelo Citrus grandis on suppression of histamine accumulation in dried whole red-eye round herring Etrumeus teres

A histamine-producing bacterium was isolated from dried whole red-eye round herring Etrumeus teres in which histamine accumulation had been observed. The closest phylogenetic neighbor of this bacterial strain was Photobacterium angustum, which shares a 99.15% similarity based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing. An essential oil prepared from pomelo Citrus grandis rind showed strong inhibition of growth of P. angustum isolated from dried whole red-eye round herring. Histamine accumulation was also strongly depressed in dried whole red-eye round herring by the addition of the essential oil to the brine used in the salting process. Application of this citrus essential oil therefore effectively suppresses histamine formation in whole dried red-eye round herring.