Research Publications (Food Safety)

Aerobic spores pose serious problems for both food product manufacturers and consumers. Milk is particularly at risk and thus an important issue of preventive consumer protection and quality assurance. The spore-former Bacillus cereus is a food poisoning Gram-positive pathogen which mainly produces two different types of toxins, the diarrhea inducing and the emetic toxins. Reliable and rapid analytical assays for the detection of B.

In the present study, we investigated the occurrence of yeast flora in a xerophilic environment, the desert region of Namibia, with the aim to isolate the yeast strains with antimicrobial activity toward plant pathogen molds. Using traditional culture-dependent methods, a total of 44 yeast strains belonging to 6 genera and 12 species were isolated.

A starter culture composed of Pediococcus pentosaceus, Lactobacillus sakei and Staphylococcus xylosus isolated from Chinese-fermented sausages was used to manufacture fermented sausages. The effects of the starter culture on histamine accumulation, nitrite depletion, lipid oxidation and quality parameters including pH, water activity and total volatile base nitrogen (TVB-N), as well as the color and texture properties, were evaluated.

We assessed the effect of closing live poultry markets in China on influenza A(H7N9) virus detection and viability. Intensive sampling was carried out before, during, and after a 2-week citywide market closure; the markets were cleaned and disinfected at the beginning of the closure period. Swab samples were collected at different sites within the markets and tested for H7N9 by real-time reverse transcription PCR and culture.

Publication date: Available online 1 September 2015

Author(s): JANICE REIS CIACCI-ZANELLA, REJANE SCHAEFER, DANIELLE GAVA, VANESSA HAACH, MAURÍCIO EGÍDIO CANTÃO, ARLEI COLDEBELLA

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2015

Author(s): Geik Yong Ang, Choo Yee Yu, Kok Gan Chan, Kirnpal Kaur Banga Singh, Chan Yean Yean

Publication date: Available online 3 September 2015

Author(s): Chen Zhang, Peihua Niu, Yanying Hong, Ji Wang, Jingyun Zhang, Xuejun Ma

Publication date: November 2015
, Volume 224
Author(s): Deeksha S. Tare, Shailesh D. Pawar

In 2006, a deadly Escherichia coli O157:H7 outbreak in bagged spinach was traced to California’s Central Coast region, where >70% of the salad vegetables sold in the United States are produced. Although no definitive cause for the outbreak could be determined, wildlife was implicated as a disease vector. Growers were...

Publication date: 2 December 2015
, Volume 214
Author(s): Vida Šimat, Jelena Miletić, Tanja Bogdanović, Vedran Poljak, Ivona Mladineo

Publication date: 2 December 2015
, Volume 214
Author(s): Luana Martins Perin, Barbara Dal Bello, Simona Belviso, Giuseppe Zeppa, Antônio Fernandes de Carvalho, Luca Cocolin, Luís Augusto Nero

Publication date: 23 December 2015
, Volume 215
Author(s): Lorraine Endersen, Aidan Coffey, R. Paul Ross, Olivia McAuliffe, Colin Hill, Jim O'Mahony

Hilo Yen, Nakaba Sugimoto, Toru Tobe

Mass spectrometry has recently become a powerful technique for bacterial identification. Mass spectrometry approaches generally rely upon introduction of the bacteria into a matrix-assisted laser-desorption time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometer with mass spectrometric recognition of proteins specific to that organism that form a reliable fingerprint.

About 1.5(v/v) thyme and clove essential oils were added to 1.5% (w/v) sorbitol-amended whey isolate-based film. These films were used for coating traditional semi-hard kashar cheese (traditional Turkish cheese). Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus microorganisms were selected for the determination of antimicrobial properties of the films by artificial contamination.

Publication date: January 2016
, Volume 111
Author(s): Annalisa Petruzzelli, Andrea Osimani, Marina Pasquini, Francesca Clementi, Vittorio Vetrano, Francesca Paolini, Martina Foglini, Eleonora Micci, Alberto Paoloni, Franco Tonucci

This study was carried out to improve the microbiological safety and shelf life of minimally processed cabbage and carrots at 16CSalad vegetables can be a source of opportunistic pathogens and spoilage bacteria – namely, Aeromonas hydrophila, A. sobria and Pseudomonas syringae.

Volume 59, Issue 3, Page 422-430, September 2015.

Volume 59, Issue 3, Page 355-367, September 2015.

Patricia Alba, Fabiola Feltrin, Gessica Cordaro, María Concepción Porrero, Britta Kraushaar, María Angeles Argudín, Suvi Nykäsenoja, Monica Monaco, Marc Stegger, Frank M. Aarestrup, Patrick Butaye, Alessia Franco, Antonio Battisti

Thiamine pyrophosphate is a required cofactor for all forms of life. The pyrimidine moiety of thiamine, 2-methyl-4-amino-5-hydroxymethylpyrimidine phosphate (HMP-P), is synthesized by different mechanisms in bacteria and plants compared to fungi. In this study, Salmonella enterica was used as a host to probe requirements for activity of the yeast HMP-P synthase, Thi5p.