Research Publications (Food Safety)

The occurrence of multidrug‐resistant zoonotic bacteria in animals has been increasing worldwide. Working in close contact with livestock increases the risk of carriage of these bacteria. We investigated the occurrence of extended‐spectrum beta‐lactamase (ESBL) and plasmidic AmpC beta‐lactamase producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL/pAmpC‐PE) and livestock‐associated methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (LA‐MRSA) in Finnish veterinarians (n = 320).

Salmonella enterica is a common food‐borne pathogen with occasional multidrug resistance (MDR). Salmonella genomic island (SGI1) is a horizontally transmissible genomic island, containing an MDR gene cluster. All Salmonella serotypes are public health concern, although there is an additional concern associated with those that harbour SGI1. In Iran, there are no data on the presence of SGI1 variants in Salmonella isolates.

Poultry farmers faced dual risk when mutant avian influenza (AI) virus showed the zoonotic characteristics. A/H5N1 and A/H7N9 were two dominant AI virus strains that have captured the attention of the public over the years for they have been reported to bring about greater loss to poultry and human, respectively.

Leptospirosis is a zoonotic bacterial disease reported worldwide. In Uganda, seropositivity has been reported in both humans and domesticated animals, including cattle. However, it remains unknown whether cattle are shedding leptospires and thus acting as potential source for human leptospirosis. We conducted this cross‐sectional study in two cattle abattoirs in Kampala, Uganda between June and July 2017.

Objectives This study investigates the frequency and characteristics of carbapenemase‐producing Escherichia coli/Klebsiella pneumoniae (CPE/K) and extended‐spectrum cephalosporinase‐producing E. coli/K. pneumoniae (ESCE/K) in healthy humans and livestock in rural Cambodia. Additionally, household practices as risk factors for faecal carriage of ESCE/K are identified.

We investigated the prevalence of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV), Leptospira and Ascaris suum (A. suum) seropositivity, and of nasal methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) colonization among Austrian practising veterinarians, and assessed the association with occupational swine livestock exposure. The 261 participants completed a questionnaire on demographics, intensity of occupational swine livestock contact and glove use during handling animals and their secretions.

We estimated that more than 11,000 people were exposed to highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses in EU/EEA countries over the outbreak period October 2016–September 2018 by cross‐linking data submitted by Member States to European Food Safety Authority and EMPRES‐i. A stronger framework for collecting human exposure data is required.

We describe a new effort to enhance climate forecast relevance and usability through the development of a system for evaluating and displaying real‐time subseasonal to seasonal (S2S) climate forecasts on a watershed scale. Water managers may not use climate forecasts to their full potential due to perceived low skill, mismatched spatial and temporal resolutions, or lack of knowledge or tools to ingest data.

A method combining surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) with a lateral flow strip (LFS) was developed for the quantitative and sensitive analysis of Escherichia coli O157:H7. AuMBA@Ag nanoparticles were prepared as SERS probes, and 4‐methylthiobenzoic acid (MBA) as a Raman reporter was inserted into the interior gap of the Au@Ag core‐shell nanoparticles, which replaced the Au nanoparticles that serve as SERS nanotags in traditional LFS.

Microwave‐powered cold plasma (CP) treatment was evaluated as a means to increase the antioxidant activity, water solubility, and dispersion stability of prickly pear cactus fruit (Opuntia ficus‐indica (L.) Mill.) extract. The extract (2 g) was treated at various CP generation powers and treatment times at 25 °C to 28 °C.

In Mexico, there is limited information regarding food consumer behaviors at home. The knowledge of food consumption and food handling practices can help to determine more realistically the exposure to different hazards, such as Salmonella spp. on the population.

Wheat flour may be thermally processed to improve microbiological safety; however, come‐up time for thermal processing of wheat flour is long due to its low thermal conductivity. In the present study, a novel radiofrequency (RF)‐assisted thermal processing approach was investigated for reducing the come‐up time of soft wheat flour (SWF) and for improving microbiological safety.

An effective method for the determination of 49 pesticide residues and 17 mycotoxins in wine by a modified QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe) method and ultrahigh‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry was developed. The target compounds were extracted with 1% (v/v) formic acid–acetonitrile, and no cleanup steps were required.

In this study, silver (Ag), zinc oxide (ZnO), and copper oxide (CuO) metallic nanoparticles were used in preparation of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) nanobiocomposite films. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X‐ray diffraction (EDXA), water vapor permeability (WVP), ultraviolet and visible light (UV–Vis) spectroscopy, and mechanical and microbial tests were used to determine the characteristics of the obtained active films.

In the present study, we analyzed the tilmicosin residues in eggs as well as the dietary risks posed by the residual drug to Chinese consumers. Tilmicosin was administrated to laying hens via drinking water in doses of 100 mg/L and 300 mg/L (dose 1 and dose 2) for 5 days. Its residues distribution within egg matrices were detected using a QuEChERS method coupled with liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐MS/MS).

Diuron is a urea herbicide that is frequently detected in surface water, groundwater, and marine waters. However, there are few methods or guidelines reported on ensuring the quality of sugarcane and soil. In this study, a method was developed for detecting diuron to ensure the quality and safety of food and sugar.

Fish‐eating birds prey and scavenge on catfish ponds with outbreaks of an emergent, atypical Aeromonas hydrophila (AAH) and may play a critical role in the pond‐to‐pond spread of AAH. The objectives of this study were to: (a) determine if great egrets that consumed AAH‐infected fish shed enough AAH in their feces to cause a disease outbreak and (b) determine the environmental factor(s) and animal vector(s) associated with epidemic AAH dissemination.

The phenotypic characteristics and growth kinetics at several temperatures, salinities, and pH values of three Vibrio parahaemolyticus (Vp) strains with different virulence and one nonpathogenic strain were evaluated. Independent of the virulence of the strain, a high metabolic diversity was found, which yielded different colored phenotypes on the CHROMagar™ Vibrio. All strains were resistant to ampicillin and carbenicillin, and Vp AHPND+ organisms were the most sensitive to enrofloxacin.

An 8‐week feeding trial with juvenile hybrid tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus × Oreochromis aureus) was conducted to assess the effects of dietary phenylalanine on growth, body composition, and biochemical parameters in plasma. Six diets were formulated with graded levels of l‐phenylalanine (0.43, 0.74, 1.01, 1.30, 1.60, and 1.91% of the diet). Each diet was randomly assigned to triplicate groups with 20 fish per replicate (5.63 ± 0.04 g).

A 10‐week feeding trial aimed to investigate the effects of dietary vitamin C (l‐ascorbic acid) on growth, antioxidant activity, and immunity in ricefield eel, Monopterus albus. Six diets were formulated with different levels of vitamin C supplementation (0.1, 17.5, 34.8, 68.6, 139.7, and 278.5 mg/kg). The results indicated that the weight gain (WG) of the M. albus fed the diets with vitamin C was remarkably higher than that of the M.

Acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND) causes massive mortality in shrimp ponds within the first month poststocking. The causative agent is a specific strain of Vibrio parahaemolyticus (VPAHPND) that has acquired the capability to produce virulent binary toxins called ToxA and ToxB. This study aims to test the effect of the addition of an autoinducer‐2‐containing cell‐free supernatant (CFS) from the mutant Vibrio harveyi (VH) on growth and toxin production of VPAHPND.

The abattoir sector plays a crucial role in controlling foodborne hazards, so insight in the incentives that motivate abattoirs to implement control measures is of great relevance to food safety risk managers and policy makers. Therefore, a cross‐sectional telephone survey was conducted to assess the attitudes and opinions of abattoirs in Belgium and the Netherlands toward preventive measures for controlling microbiological pathogens.

The bacteriological quality and safety of ready‐to‐eat (RTE) foods in Barbados were assessed in two separate studies conducted between 2014 and 2016. In Study 1, 206 food samples were processed for Salmonella spp. by conventional bacteriological methods. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and serotyping were used for confirmation. In Study 2, 120 food samples were processed for the total aerobic plate count (TAPC), coliform count, and E. coli count using conventional bacteriological methods.

Concerns over the safety of nitrite and its role in the formation of nitrosamines have aroused considerable interest in developing alternative antimicrobial agents to replace nitrite. Plant‐derived antimicrobial agents could serve against food spoilage and pathogens. For the first time in this study, three semiempirical kinetic models, that is, exponential, homographic, and n‐order kinetic models were established to describe the microbiological population pattern and dynamic behavior.

This study aimed to functionalize the stainless steel surface with silver and to evaluate its antimicrobial capacity. For this purpose, stainless steel coupons coated or not with silver films were exposed to the presence of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. The results of bacterial adhesion on the silver functionalized coupons showed lower counts of adhered S. aureus cells when compared to E. coli.