Research Publications (Food Safety)

Ochratoxin A (OTA) is one of the most common toxins in food and feed, which seriously affects the health of public. Herein, a convenient biosensor for OTA detecting was built based on graphene oxide (GO) and quantum dots-aptamer (QDs-aptamer) in this investigation. The results in our study demonstrated that the constructed biosensor shows excellent sensitivity and highly selectivity for OTA.

In the European Union (EU), Salmonella was the causative agent responsible for almost one in three (30.7%) of all foodborne outbreaks reported by member states during 2018, causing 11,581 cases of illness, which represented an increase of 20.6% compared to 2017.

Agricultural product contamination by endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) residues is an international public health issue and requires continuously stringent administration. A high-throughput biotin-streptavidin-amplified enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (BA-ELISA) for detection of progesterone (P4) has been established to be applied in determining milk samples.

A novel method based on ultrasonic-assisted aqueous two-phase extraction (UAATPE) coupled with solidifying organic drop-dispersible liquid–liquid microextraction (SOD-DLLME) was developed for simultaneous determination of nine mycotoxins (aflatoxins of B1, B2, G1, G2, and M1, ochratoxin A, zearalenone, deoxynivalenol and patulin) in medicinal and edible foods by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with diode array detector (DAD) and fluorescence detector (FLD) in series.

Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) is the only toxin with the maximum residue limit in milk, and ochratoxin A (OTA) represents a common toxin in cereals foods. It is common to find the co-occurrence of these two toxins in the environment. However, the interactive effect of these toxins on hepatoxicity and underlying mechanisms is still unclear.

Letters in Applied Microbiology, Accepted Article. Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 (EHEC) causes foodborne outbreaks worldwide and the bacteria form antimicrobial-tolerant biofilm. We investigated the abilities of Thymus daenensis and Satureja hortensis essential oils (EOs) to inhibit bacterial growth, biofilm formation and quorum sensing (QS) by E. coli O157:H7.

Zoonoses and Public Health, EarlyView. Cryptosporidium parvum is a parasitic zoonotic pathogen responsible for diarrheal illness in humans and animals worldwide. We report an investigation of a cryptosporidiosis outbreak in raccoons and wildlife rehabilitation workers at a Virginia facility. Fifteen (31%) of 49 facility personnel experienced symptoms meeting the case definition, including four laboratory-confirmed cases.

Human milk N-glycome was previously identified to have strong antipathogenic activities. This study is aimed to characterize the detailed antibacterial properties and the potential function mechanism of human milk N-glycome against Staphylococcus aureus.

Evaluation of food quality and stability during storage and processing necessitates understanding the kinetics of food functional property changes and the underlying reactions. In this study, textural stability of beans during storage and subsequent cooking was evaluated through an integrated kinetic approach.

An Ag@C hybrid bipolar electrode (BPE) sensing platform has been established for the temporal detection of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) in food. Combining the advantages of anodic dissolution of Ag and cathodic biocatalysis of oxygen (O2) reduction, this strategy showed an ultralow detection limit down to 10 CFU mL−1.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the possible involvement of transient receptor potential (TRP) channels, Acid-sensing ion channels (ASIC) and N-Methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) in the orofacial antinociceptive behaviour effect of botulinum toxin type A (BoNT/A) in adult zebrafish. Initially, the open field test was performed to evaluate the effect of BoNT/A on the locomotor activity of zebrafish.

Developing new strategies to replace or supplement antibiotics to combat bacterial infection is a pressing task in the field of microbiological research. In this study, we report a lytic enzyme named P9ly deriving from the bacteriophage PSD9 that could infect multidrug-resistant Shigella. This enzyme was identified through whole-genome sequencing of PSD9. The results show that P9ly contains a conserved T4-like_lys domain and belongs to the phage lysozyme family.

Aflatoxins are naturally occurring high-toxic secondary metabolites, which cause worldwide environmental contaminations and wastes of food and feed resources and severely threaten human health. Thus, the highly efficient methods and technologies for detoxification of aflatoxins are urgently needed in a long term.

Toxoplasma gondii is known to have a complex life cycle and infect almost all kinds of warm-blooded animals around the world. The brain of the host could be persistently infected by cerebral cysts, and a variety of psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and suicide have been reported to be related with latent toxoplasmosis. The infected animals showed fear reduction and a tendency to be preyed upon.

Aflatoxin (AFT) contamination, commonly in foods and grains with extremely low content while high toxicity, has caused serious economic and health problems worldwide. Now researchers are making an effort to develop nanomaterials with remarkable adsorption capacity for the identification, determination and regulation of AFT. Herein, we constructed a novel hollow-structured microporous organic networks (HMONs) material.

Due to the abuse of traditional antibiotics and the continuous mutation of microbial resistance genes, microbial infections have become serious problems for human health. Therefore, novel antibacterial agents are urgently required, and amphibian antimicrobial peptides (AMP) are among the most interesting potential antibacterial leads.

International Journal of Food Science & Technology, EarlyView. The present study demonstrates the first time investigation on Cinnamomum camphora essential oil (CCEO) loaded chitosan nanoemulsion coating on Citrus aurantifolia fruits to ensure protection against Aspergillus flavus infestation and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) contamination.

Natural products provide a rich source of potential antimicrobials for treating infectious diseases for which drug resistance has emerged. Foremost among these diseases is tuberculosis.

We present an easy-to-use lateral flow immunoassay for rapid, precise and sensitive quantification of one of the most hazardous mycotoxins – ochratoxin A (OTA), which is widely present in food and agricultural commodities. The achieved limit of detection during the 20-min OTA registration is 11 pg/mL. The assay provides accurate results in both low- and high-concentration ranges.

A turn-on fluorescent sensing platform based on an ultralow concentration of Al-metal organic frameworks for the detection of aflatoxin B1 has been developed for the first time. This fluorescence turn-on sensor exhibits the largest fluorescence enhancement (or quenching) constant value of 179404 M-1 among all luminescence-based chemical sensors reported till date.

Enzymatic acylation of anthocyanin with fatty acid improves its lipophilic solubility and application potential. Nevertheless, evaluation of functional properties of product is premise for application. This study investigated the antimicrobial potential and the underlying mechanisms of an acylated anthocyanin, namely, cyanidin-3-O-glucoside–lauric acid ester (C3G-LA), to provide guidelines for its application.

Development of efficient and sensitive adsorbent for capturing phenoxy carboxylic acids (PCAs) from environmental and food samples is necessary because PCAs could threaten human health. Designing nanoparticle with multiple functional groups is beneficial to achieve the strong adsorption interaction and the specific recognition for target compound.

As a part of risk analysis for consumption of meat from wild animals, the prevalence of Campylobacter spp. in wild deer and boar in Japan was investigated. C. hyointestinalis subsp. hyointestinalis (C. hyointestinalis) was isolated from 2.8% (7/253) of the wild deer and 22.1% (71/321) of the wild boar examined.

Waterborne diseases remain a public health concern in developing countries where many lack access to safe water. Water testing mainly uses bacterial indicators to assess water quality, which may not fully indicate the threat from other non-bacterial pathogens like enteric viruses. This study was done to ascertain and establish the viral load, the temporal and spatial distribution of rotavirus A and norovirus (GI and GII) in sewage and river water samples.

Bacterial keratitis (BK) is the most common type of infectious keratitis. The spectrum of pathogenic bacteria and their susceptibility to antibiotics varied with the different regions. A meta-analysis was conducted to review the global culture rate, distribution, current trends, and drug susceptibility of isolates from BK over the past 20 years (2000–2020). Four databases were searched, and published date was limited between 2000 and 2020.