Abstract
The aim of this study was to determine the survival of Listeria spp. during the preparation and ripening of an artisan Serbian sausage (Petrovská klobása) and to characterize the isolates by amplification of the hlyA gene. Results obtained by standard microbiological and molecular methods showed that during fermentation, drying, ripening and storage of Petrovská klobása, 17 out of 99 samples were positive for the presence of Listeria spp. Among them we detected a hemolytic, atypical, non pathogenic L. innocua strain FSL J1-023, whose genome sequence is important in understanding the role of horizontal gene transfer and recombination in the evolution of pathogenicity of Listeria. The most important product characteristics influencing the survival and growth of Listeria spp. during production and ripening of Petrovská klobása were: pH, water activity, temperature and starter culture.