Research Publications (Food Safety)

In recent years, a number of bacterial detection methods have been developed to replace time-consuming culture methods. One interesting approach is to mobilize the ability of phage tail proteins to recognize and bind to bacterial hosts. In this paper, the authors provide an overview of the current methodologies in which phage proteins play major roles in detecting pathogenic bacteria.

Background:Campylobacter and Salmonella are the leading causes of foodborne diseases worldwide. Recently, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has become one of the most critical challenges for public health and food safety.

Campylobacter is a leading cause of foodborne gastroenteritis. Recent studies have indicated a rise in fluoroquinolone-resistant (FQ-R) Campylobacter in cattle, where FQ is used to control bovine respiratory disease (BRD). To assess the effect of danofloxacin treatment on the development of FQ-resistance in C. jejuni, 30 commercial calves were divided into Group 1, Group 2, and Group 3 (n = 10), and were all inoculated orally with FQ-susceptible (FQ-S) C.

Children with cerebral palsy (CP) present a higher prevalence and severity of caries. Although researchers have studied multiple risk factors for caries in CP, the role of microorganisms in caries remains one of the critical factors worth exploring. In order to explore the differences in the supragingival plaque microbiota (SPM), supragingival plaque samples were collected from 55 CP children and 23 non-CP children for 16S rRNA sequencing.

Poultry provides an important protein source consumed globally by human population, and simultaneously, acts as a substantial reservoir of antibiotic resistant bacterial species such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Campylobacter, Clostridium perfringens. These bacterial species can include commensal strains with beneficial roles on poultry health and productivity, and pathogenic strains not only to poultry but zoonotically to man.

Campylobacteriosis is one of the most common types of bacterial gastroenteritis affecting humans, and poultry is considered a major source of the causative organism, Campylobacter spp. Broilers may arrive contaminated at slaughterhouses, and transport crates could be considered a potential source of contamination. Thus, cleaning and disinfection procedures are crucial to avoid cross-contamination among flocks.

Journal of Food Safety, EarlyView. Engineered nanoparticles have been explored for their potential to serve as additives to foods, their packages, and contact surfaces because they are stable in a wide range of harsh environments and display inherent antimicrobial properties.

The effects of sumac, cumin, black pepper and red pepper diethyl ether extracts on the growth of eight foodborne pathogens (FBP) and their biogenic amine (BA) production were investigated in histidine decarboxylase broth. The antimicrobial effect was determined by the minimum inhibitory (MIC) and minimum bactericidal (MBC) concentrations. Sumac extract showed the highest antimicrobial activity against FBP.

Campylobacter jejuni is a foodborne pathogen causing bacterial gastroenteritis, with the highest incidence reported in Europe. The prevalence of antibiotic resistance in C. jejuni, as well as in many other bacterial pathogens, has increased over the last few years. In this report, we describe the presence of a plasmid in a multi-drug-resistant C. jejuni strain isolated from a gastroenteritis patient. Mating experiments demonstrated the transference of this genetic element (pCjH01) among C.

Campylobacter jejuni is a globally important foodborne pathogen that can exist environmentally in a viable but non-culturable (VBNC) state, leading to missed detection of VBNC cells in food and false results in epidemiological surveillance. To establish a method for its resuscitation from the VBNC state and enable better detection, the mechanisms by which C. jejuni are induced into the VBNC state should be understood in detail.

Campylobacter cross-contamination of Danish broiler flocks at slaughterhouses was investigated using data from two national surveillance components and from ad-hoc sampling. The animal level (AL) and food safety (FS) components from 2018 were compared. The AL component contained results of PCR on pools of cloacal swabs from 3,012 flocks processed at two Danish slaughterhouses (S1-S2), while the FS component regarded culture testing of leg skins from 999/3,012 flocks.

Listeria, Campylobacter, Salmonella and Escherichia coli are among the most common causes of foodborne disease in humans, causing death and hospitalization with high costs. Their presence in different foods and environments, and their ability to adapt to varying conditions make early and rapid detection essential to ensure food safety.

Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, Accepted Article. Campylobacter infection is an important cause of genital failure in ruminants in developed countries. Although historically Campylobacter fetus subspecies fetus has been the main cause of abortion in sheep, C. jejuni is also increasingly associated with sheep abortions.

In 2016, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) established guidelines which modified the Buffered Peptone Water (BPW) rinsate material to include additional compounds that would better neutralize residual processing aids and allow for better recovery of sublethal injured Salmonella spp. cells.

Background The Thermo Scientific SureTect™ Campylobacter jejuni, C. coli, and C. lari PCR Kit is a real-time PCR assay for the detection and differentiation of C. jejuni, C. coli, and C. lari from raw poultry, ready-to-cook poultry products, and environmental samples. Objective The Thermo Scientific SureTect Campylobacter jejuni, C. coli, and C. lari PCR Kit was evaluated for AOAC®Performance Tested MethodsSM certification.

Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, Accepted Article. Live bird markets (LBMs) provide integral hubs for 95% of poultry produced for food. Surveillance systems in LBMs serving smallholder farmers in sub-saharan Africa are often non-functional and data about public health risks and emerging pathogens are lacking. Studies in Kenya have reported 29% – 44% Campylobacter-prevalence in poultry.

Journal of Applied Microbiology, Accepted Article. This study was conducted to test the ability of a carvacrol-based formulation (Phodé, France) to decrease the C. jejuni caecal load in inoculated broiler chickens and to study the impact of the C. jejuni inoculation alone or combined with the product, on the caecal microbiota. At day 1, chickens were either fed a control feed or the same diet supplemented with a carvacrol-based product.

Campylobacter enteritis (En) is the most frequently diagnosed bacterial En worldwide, including in Japan. Campylobacter spp. can also cause bloodstream infection (BSI), reactive arthritis, and Guillain-Barré syndrome. The purpose of this study was to clarify the characteristics of Campylobacter jejuni strains that cause BSI in comparison with En-causing strains.

Fatty-type (FT) Pekin ducks exhibit higher lipid deposition than lean-type (LT) ducks. The gut microbiota plays an important role in modulating fat metabolism. We compared the growth performance, slaughter performance, and cecal microbiota of FT and LT Pekin ducks and analyzed the role of cecal microbiota in lipid deposition in Pekin ducks. A total of 140 1-day-old FT and LT Pekin ducks with similar body weights were randomly assigned to 10 cages, with 14 ducks in each replicate.

Journal of Applied Microbiology, Accepted Article. This study explored how dairy farm operating systems with free-stall or tie-stall housing and cow hygiene score influence the occurrence of zoonotic bacteria in raw milk. Samples from bulk tank milk, milk filters, feces, feed, teats and teat milk were collected from eleven farms with loose housing and seven farms with tie-stall housing every second month over a period of 11 months and analyzed for the presence of STEC by culturing c

Campylobacter jejuni is a leading cause of food-borne disease worldwide. The pathogenicity of C. jejuni is closely associated with the internalization process in host epithelial cells, which is related to a host immune response. Autophagy indicates a key role in the innate immune system of the host to exclude invasive pathogens. Most bacteria are captured by autophagosomes and degraded by autophagosome-lysosome fusion in host cells.

Campylobacter jejuni (C. jejuni) is a major pathogen responsible for the food-borne illness, campylobacteriosis. To comply with regulatory requirements, its total concentration in food and animal feces must be extremely low. As a result, monitoring this bacterium requires an immediate and cost-effective approach that meets the requirements of the food and livestock industries.

Zoonoses and Public Health, EarlyView. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of control strategies (probiotic supplementation and vaccination) at farm on thermotolerant Campylobacter infection due to the consumption of salad cross-contaminated from broiler meat. The broiler food chain was modelled considering the most common practices applied in Argentina (baseline model) and their effect on the prevalence and counts of Campylobacter.

The N-acetylneuraminic acid−α(2–3)-galactose epitope is often located at the nonreducing terminal ends of glycans on the envelopes of many pathogens, and it is believed that this structure mimics a host’s oligosaccharide so as to circumvent and/or counteract the host’s immune responses.

The ubiquitous unicellular eukaryote, Acanthamoeba, is known to play a role in the survival and dissemination of Campylobacter jejuni. C. jejuni is the leading cause of bacterial foodborne gastroenteritis world-wide and is a major public health problem. The ability of C.