Research Publications (Food Safety)

Samar S. Boswihi, Edet E. Udo, Stefan Monecke, Bindu Mathew, BobNoronha, Tina Verghese, Sajida B. Tappa

Background

Frequent changes in the epidemiology of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) occurring worldwide demand regular surveillance to study their composition and distribution in healthcare facilities. We investigated the genotypic characteristics of MRSA obtained in Kuwait hospitals to better understand their clonal distribution.

Muhammet Karakavuk, Duygu Aldemir, Aurélien Mercier, Esra Atalay Şahar, Hüseyin Can, Jean-Benjamin Murat, Ömer Döndüren, Şengül Can, Hüseyin Gökhan Özdemir, Aysu Değirmenci Döşkaya, Bayram Pektaş, Marie-Laure Dardé, Adnan Yüksel Gürüz, Mert Döşkaya

Heather E. Miller, Charles L. Larson, Robert A. Heinzen

Publication date: September 2018
, Volume 91

Author(s): Sergio Ferro, Tony Amorico, Permal Deo

Journal of Food Protection, Volume 81, Issue 5, Page 860-869, May 2018.

Nina Jagmann, Bodo Philipp

In Aspergillus and Penicillium species, an essential pH-response transcription factor pacC is involved in growth, pathogenicity, and toxigenicity. To investigate the connection between ochratoxin A (OTA) biosynthesis and ambient pH, the AopacC in Aspergillus ochraceus was functionally characterized using a loss-of-function mutant. The mycelium growth was inhibited under pH 4.5 and 10.0, while the sporulation increased under alkaline condition.

AbstractBackgroundHigh-pathogenicity avian influenza viruses continue to circulate in poultry and wild birds and occasionally infect humans, sometimes with fatal outcomes. Development of vaccines is a priority to prepare for potential pandemics but is complicated by antigenic variation of the surface glycoprotein hemagglutinin.

Host-associated microbiota help defend against bacterial pathogens; however, the mechanisms by which pathogens overcome this defense remain largely unknown. We developed a zebrafish model and used live imaging to directly study how the human pathogen Vibrio cholerae invades the intestine. The gut microbiota of fish monocolonized by symbiotic strain Aeromonas...

Our studies of the SNP rs8060947 determine that the A allele is associated with increased invasion of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi and increased susceptibility to typhoid fever (1). Gilchrist et al. (2) now provide evidence that the A allele is also associated with increased risk for bacteremia, and the association...

Performing a genome-wide association study of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (S. Typhi) invasion, Alvarez et al. (1) identify a trait-associated SNP, rs8060947, in VAC14. rs8060947 is an expression quantitative trait locus for VAC14 RNA expression, and carriage of the A allele is associated with reduced VAC14 RNA and protein expression,...

Publication date: September 2018
, Volume 91

Author(s): A. Giusti, E. Ricci, M. Guarducci, L. Gasperetti, N. Davidovich, A. Guidi, A. Armani

Publication date: September 2018
, Volume 91

Author(s): Jianhua Liu, Jie Xiao, Feng Li, Ying Shi, Dapeng Li, Qingrong Huang

Journal of Food Protection, Volume 81, Issue 5, Page 848-859, May 2018.

Journal of Food Safety, EarlyView.

Journal of Food Safety, EarlyView.

AbstractDrinking water for poultry is not subject to particular microbiological, chemical and physical requirements, thereby representing a potential transmission route for pathogenic microorganisms and contaminants and/or becoming unsuitable for water-administered medications.

AbstractThis study was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of an alcoholic propolis extract (15%) as a disinfectant for Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica) hatching eggs. A total of 600 eggs were randomly divided into four experimental groups: 1) negative control (NC), without disinfection, 2) control (C), fumigated with formaldehyde gas, 3) (A), sprayed with 96% alcohol, and 4) (P), sprayed with 15% alcoholic propolis extract.

Nadezhda A. Wall, C. Coral Dominguez-Medina, Sian E. Faustini, Charlotte N. Cook, Andrew McClean, Mark D. Jesky, Marisol Perez-Toledo, Matthew D. Morgan, Alexandra G. Richter, Charles J. Ferro, Paul Cockwell, Paul A. Moss, Ian R. Henderson, Lorraine Harper, Adam F. Cunningham

Listeria monocytogenes is a food pathogen capable of growing at a broad temperature range from 50°C to refrigerator temperatures. A key requirement for bacterial activity and growth at low temperatures is the ability to adjust membrane lipid composition to maintain cytoplasma membrane fluidity. In this study we confirmed earlier findings that the extent of fatty acid profile adaptation differed between L. monocytogenes strains.

Novel preventatives could help in efforts to limit Vibrio cholerae infection and the spread of cholera. Bacteriophage (or phage) treatment has been proposed to be an alternative intervention, given the rapid replication of virulent phages, prey specificity, and relative ease of finding new virulent phages. Phage tropism is dictated in part by the presence of phage receptors on the bacterial surface. While many phages that can kill V.

In recent years, plasma-activated solutions (PASs) have made good progress in the disinfection of medical devices, tooth whitening, and fruit preservation. In this study, we investigated the inactivation efficacy of Newcastle disease virus by PASs. Water, 0.9% NaCl, and 0.3% H2O2 were excited by plasma to obtain the corresponding solutions PAS(H2O), PAS(NaCl), and PAS(H2O2).

Microgreens, like sprouts, are relatively fast-growing products and are generally consumed raw. Moreover, as observed for sprouts, microbial contamination from preharvest sources may also be present in the production of microgreens. In this study, two Salmonella enterica serovars (Hartford and Cubana), applied at multiple inoculation levels, were evaluated for survival and growth on alfalfa sprouts and Swiss chard microgreens by using the most-probable-number (MPN) method.

The adjustment of metabolic patterns is fundamental to fungal biology and plays vital roles in adaptation to diverse ecological challenges. Nematode-trapping fungi can switch their lifestyle from saprophytic to pathogenic by developing specific trapping devices induced by nematodes to infect their prey as a response to nutrient depletion in nature. However, the chemical identity of the specific fungal metabolites used during the switch remains poorly understood.

To assess phenotypic bacterial antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in different strata (e.g., host populations, environmental areas, manure, or sewage effluents) for epidemiological purposes, isolates of target bacteria can be obtained from a stratum using various sample types. Also, different sample processing methods can be applied. The MIC of each target antimicrobial drug for each isolate is measured.