Research Publications (Food Safety)

Foods contaminated by harmful substances such as bacteria and viruses have caused more than 200 kinds of diseases, ranging from diarrhea to cancer. Among them, Bacillus cereus (B. cereus) is a foodborne pathogen that commonly contaminates raw meat, fresh vegetables, rice, and uncooked food. The current chemical preservatives may have adverse effects on food and even human health. Therefore, natural antibacterial agents are sought after as alternative preservatives.

Author(s): Kateřina Dorotíková, Josef Kameník, Kateřina Bogdanovičová, Simona Křepelová, Jan Strejček, Danka Haruštiaková

The thermotolerant representative of the Bacillus cereus group, Bacillus cytotoxicus, reliably harbors the coding gene of cytotoxin K-1 (CytK-1). This protein is a highly cytotoxic variant of CytK toxin, initially recovered from a diarrheal foodborne outbreak that caused the death of three people. In recent years, the cytotoxicity of B. cytotoxicus has become controversial, with some strains displaying a high cytotoxicity while others show no cytotoxicity towards cell lines.

Cincalok, a traditional fermented shrimp, is prepared by mixing rebon shrimps (Acetes sp) with coarse salt and granulated sugar in a certain ratio. This research was aimed at studying the effect of adding garlic and red chilli pepper powder on the physicochemical, microbiological, and sensory properties of cincalok.

Foodborne pathogens present in food and agricultural systems are recognized as a considerable burden for human health and socioeconomic development. Mānuka essential oil (MEO) exhibits antimicrobial, antiparasitic, photo-protective, and some medicinal effects.

Bacillus cereus is a well-characterized human pathogen that produces toxins associated with diarrheal and emetic foodborne diseases. To investigate the possible transmission of B. cereus on lettuce farms in China and determine its enterotoxicity, (I) a total of 524 samples (lettuce: 332, soil: 69, water: 57, manure: 57, pesticide: 9) were collected from 46 lettuce farms in five Chinese provinces, (II) multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was used to classify B.

Due to its food-poisoning potential, Bacillus cereus has attracted the attention of the food industry. The cereulide-toxin-producing subgroup is of particular concern, as cereulide toxin is implicated in broadscale food-borne outbreaks and occasionally causes fatalities. The health risks associated with long-term cereulide exposure at low doses remain largely unexplored.

Bacillus cereus D2, a psychrotrophic strain, plays an essential role in the restoration of heavy metal-contaminated soils, especially at low temperatures. However, the cold shock response mechanisms of this strain are unclear. In this study, the cold shock response of B. cereus D2 was characterized; as per the Arrhenius curve, 10 °C was chosen as the cold shock temperature.

Sensitive, simple, and rapid pathogen separation and detection methods are essential for the early diagnosis and immediate medical treatment of bacterial infections. In this study, a novel strategy based on vancomycin (Van)-modified ovalbumin (OVA) mediated magnetic nanoprobes (MBs-OVA-Van) combined with multiplex polymerase chain reaction (mPCR) was developed for efficient isolation and detection of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Bacillus cereus (B.

Soil contamination with heavy metals causes heavy environmental problems, in particular toxic effects on plants as well as on animals and humans. This article analyzes the effects of copper, a potentially toxic metal and abundant contaminant, on soil bacteria. Gram-positive soil bacteria of the Bacillus and Arthrobacter species, isolated from heavy metal contaminated areas, have been investigated as regards copper resistance.

Antibiotic resistance is a major concern given the rapid emergence of multiple-drug-resistant bacteria compared to the discovery of novel antibacterials. An alternative strategy is enhancing the existing available drugs. Nanomedicine has emerged as an exciting area of research, showing promise in the enhanced development of existing antimicrobials. Herein, we synthesized nanocarriers and loaded these with available clinically approved drugs, namely Moxifloxacin and Sulfamethoxazole.

Postharvest strawberry is susceptible to gray mold disease caused by Botrytis cinerea, which seriously damage the storage capacity of fruits. Biological control has been implicated as an effective and safe method to suppress plant disease. The aim of this study is to evaluate the postharvest disease control ability of Bacillus cereus AR156 and explore the response of strawberry fruit to this biocontrol microorganism.

Author(s): Yiying Huang, Steve H. Flint, Jon S. Palmer

Author(s): Xuyang Wang, Lu Tian, Jiapeng Fu, Sichen Liao, Siqi Yang, Xinyi Jia, Guoli Gong

Screening for producers of potent antimicrobial peptides, resulted in the isolation of Bacillus cereus BGNM1 with strong antimicrobial activity against Listeria monocytogenes. Genome sequence analysis revealed that BGNM1 contains the gene cluster associated with the production of the lantibiotic, thusin, previously identified in B. thuringiensis. Purification of the antimicrobial activity confirmed that strain BGMN1 produces thusin.

Bacillus cereus is frequently associated with food-borne intoxications, and its emetic toxin cereulide causes emesis and nausea after consumption of contaminated foods. The major source for contamination is found within contaminated raw materials containing the highly chemically resistant cereulide, independent of vegetative bacteria cells. Up to date, non-existing removal strategies for cereulide evoke the question of how the toxin is distributed within a food sample, especially cow milk.

The aim of the present study was to isolate and identify lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from fermented juice of tropical crops such as Napier grass, Ruzi grass, Purple guinea grass, Stylo legume, and Leucaena and their application to improve the quality of tropical crop silage. Fifteen strains of LAB were isolated.

Mastitis is the economically most important disease of dairy cows. This study used PacBio single-molecule real-time sequencing technology to sequence the full-length 16S rRNAs from 27 milk samples (18 from mastitis and nine from healthy cows; the cows were at different stages of lactation). We observed that healthy or late stage milk microbiota had significantly higher microbial diversity and richness. The community composition of the microbiota of different groups also varied greatly.

Author(s): Erica Tirloni, Cristian Bernardi, Francesco Celandroni, Emilia Ghelardi, Simone Stella

Fatty acids of two mesophilic and one psychrotrophic strains of the foodborne pathogen Bacillus cereus were analyzed by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry during growth at cold (10 and 12°C) vs. optimal (30°C) temperatures and during the whole growth process (6–7 sampling times) from lag to stationary phase. In all these strains, a sequential change of fatty acids during cold growth was observed.

Author(s): Vanessa Pereira Perez Alonso, Jessica de Oliveira Moraes, Dirce Yorika Kabuki

The aim of this study is to analyze and document the microbiological safety and quality of ready-to-eat foods in hospital and university canteens in Hanoi, Vietnam. A total of 420 ready-to-eat food products from 21 canteens were sampled in July 2018 and May 2019. The ratio of samples exceeding the unsatisfactory level for Total Plate Count (TPC) was 31%.

Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, EarlyView. Bacillus cereus is one of the leading etiological agents of toxin-induced foodborne diseases. Its omnipresence in different environments, spore formation, and its ability to adapt to varying conditions and produce harmful toxins make this pathogen a health hazard that should not be underestimated. Food poisoning by B. cereus can manifest itself as an emetic or diarrheal syndrome.

Bacteriocins have become biological weapons against harmful food pathogens and have attracted interest as tools for biopreservation. The aim of this study was to isolate, identify and characterize lactic acid bacterial (LAB) strains from cheese samples, partially purify potential bacteriocins and characterize their antimicrobial activity against pathogens. Bacteriocin-producing organisms were screened by Agar spot assay test.