Research Publications (Food Safety)

Publication date: 16 June 2015
, Volume 203
Author(s): Muriel Guyard-Nicodème , Katell Rivoal , Emmanuelle Houard , Valérie Rose , Ségolène Quesne , Gwenaëlle Mourand , Sandra Rouxel , Isabelle Kempf , Laurent Guillier , Françoise Gauchard , Marianne Chemaly

Publication date: 2 June 2015
, Volume 202
Author(s): C. Bacci , A. Vismarra , C. Mangia , S. Bonardi , I. Bruini , M. Genchi , L. Kramer , F. Brindani

Publication date: 2 June 2015
, Volume 202
Author(s): Catherine Hennechart-Collette , Sandra Martin-Latil , Laurent Guillier , Sylvie Perelle

Publication date: 16 June 2015
, Volume 203
Author(s): Vivek V. Pande , Vaibhav C. Gole , Andrea R. McWhorter , Sam Abraham , Kapil K. Chousalkar

The opportunistic pathogen Vibrio vulnificus occurs naturally in estuarine habitats and is readily cultured from water and oysters under warm conditions but infrequently at ambient conditions of <15°C. The presence of V. vulnificus in other habitats, such as sediments and aquatic vegetation, has been explored much less frequently. This study investigated the ecology of V.

The food-borne pathogen Vibrio parahaemolyticus has been reported as being present in New Zealand (NZ) seawaters, but there have been no reported outbreaks of food-borne infection from commercially grown NZ seafood. Our study determined the current incidence of V. parahaemolyticus in NZ oysters and Greenshell mussels and the prevalence of V. parahaemolyticus tdh and trh strains.

Microorganisms are responsible for multiple antibiotic resistances that have been associated with resistance/tolerance to heavy metals, with consequences to public health. Many genes conferring these resistances are located on mobile genetic elements, easily exchanged among phylogenetically distant bacteria.

We report the development of real-time PCR assays for genotyping Clostridium botulinum group III targeting the newly defined C. novyi sensu lato group; the nontoxic nonhemagglutinin (NTNH)-encoding gene ntnh; the botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT)-encoding genes bont/C, bont/C/D, bont/D, and bont/D/C; and the flagellin (fliC) gene. The genetic diversity of fliC among C. botulinum group III strains resulted in the definition of five major subgroups named fliC-I to fliC-V.

Bacillus cereus is an opportunistic human pathogen responsible for food poisoning and other, nongastrointestinal infections. Due to the emergence of multidrug-resistant B. cereus strains, the demand for alternative therapeutic options is increasing. To address these problems, we isolated and characterized a Siphoviridae virulent phage, PBC1, and its lytic enzymes. PBC1 showed a very narrow host range, infecting only 1 of 22 B. cereus strains.

Strawberries are an important fruit in Belgium in both production and consumption, but little information is available about the presence of Salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) in these berries, the risk factors in agricultural production, and possible specific mitigation options. In 2012, a survey was undertaken of three soil and three soilless cultivation systems in Belgium. No Salmonella spp. were isolated.

Small- and medium-size farms in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States use varied agricultural practices to produce leafy greens during spring and fall, but the impact of preharvest practices on food safety risk remains unclear. To assess farm-level risk factors, bacterial indicators, Salmonella enterica, and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) from 32 organic and conventional farms were analyzed.

Influenza A virus (IAV) has its natural reservoir in wild waterfowl, and emerging human IAVs often contain gene segments from avian viruses. The active drug metabolite of oseltamivir (oseltamivir carboxylate [OC]), stockpiled as Tamiflu for influenza pandemic preparedness, is not removed by conventional sewage treatment and has been detected in river water. There, it may exert evolutionary pressure on avian IAV in waterfowl, resulting in the development of resistant viral variants.

In this studythe chemical composition of Pulicaria gnaphalodes essential oil was evaluated by gas chromatography mass spectrometry analysis. Among the 34 components, alpha-pinene (32.2%) and 1–8-cineole (10.9%) were the major components. The antibacterial and antifungal activity of essential oil and aqueous, ethanolic and methanolic extracts from Pu. gnaphalodes against some bacteria and fungi were investigated.

Bacillus cereus is an important food pathogen, producing emetic and diarrheal syndromes, the latter mediated by enterotoxins. The ability to sensitively trace and identify this active toxin is important for food safety. This study evaluated a nonradioactive, sensitive, in vitro cell-based assay, based on B. cereus toxin inhibition of green fluorescent protein (GFP) synthesis in transduced monkey kidney Vero cells, combined with plant extracts or plant compounds that reduce viable count of B.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ultraviolet (UV)-C treatment on the decrease of the inoculated Staphylococcus aureus population in precooked shredded bullfrog meat. The precooked meat was inoculated with 8 log cfu/g of S. aureus. The packaged bullfrog's back meat was then exposed to low (0.65 mW/s/cm2), medium (1.04 mW/s/cm2) and high (1.68 mW/s/cm2) UV-C intensities over different time intervals (60, 100 and 140 s).

Publication date: September 2015
, Volume 55
Author(s): Yanzhen Wang , Xiaobin Zeng , Zhengkun Zhou , Ke Xing , Akalate Tessema , Hong Zeng , Jun Tian

Publication date: September 2015
, Volume 55
Author(s): Yimin Zhang , Charles E. Carpenter , Jeff R. Broadbent , Xin Luo

Publication date: September 2015
, Volume 55
Author(s): Songbai Wang , Yan Zhang , Wenting An , Yanli Wei , Nan Liu , Yiping Chen , Shaomin Shuang

Worldwide, noroviruses are a leading cause of gastroenteritis. They can be transmitted from person to person directly or indirectly through contaminated food, water, or environments. To estimate the proportion of foodborne infections caused by noroviruses on a global scale, we used norovirus transmission and genotyping information from multiple international outbreak surveillance systems (Noronet, CaliciNet, EpiSurv) and from a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature.

Publication date: 2 June 2015
, Volume 202
Author(s): M. Ferrara , G. Perrone , A. Gallo , F. Epifani , A. Visconti , A. Susca

Lucia Bronchalo-Vicente, Estela Rodriguez-Del Rio, Javier Freire, Ricardo Calderon-Gonzalez, Elisabet Frande-Cabanes, Jose Javier Gomez-Roman, Hector Fernández-Llaca, Sonsoles Yañez-Diaz, Carmen Alvarez-Dominguez

Aims
(1) To study the effects of cold shock on E. coli O157:H7 cells. (2) To determine if cold-shocked E. coli O157:H7 cells at stationary and exponential phases are more pressure resistant than their non-cold shocked counterparts. (3) To investigate the baro-protective role of growth media (0.1% peptone water, beef gravy and ground beef).

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O26 infections can be comparable with STEC O157 infections in severity of the acute haemolytic-uremic syndrome HUS and long-term sequelae. Among O26 STEC isolates, highly virulent clone O26:H11/H- Sequence Type 29 (ST 29) emerged in Germany in mid-1990s and spread to European countries. However, up to date, no STEC O26:H11/H- belonging to ST29 has been documented in Poland.

The Gram-positive bacterium Listeria monocytogenes is a facultative intracellular pathogen whose virulence depends on its ability to spread from cell to cell within an infected host. Although the actin-related protein 2/3 (Arp2/3) complex is necessary and sufficient for Listeria actin tail assembly, previous studies suggest that other actin polymerization factors, such as formins, may participate in protrusion formation.