Research Publications (Food Safety)

Colistin is one of the antibiotics of last resort for human health. However, the dissemination of the plasmid‐mediated colistin resistance gene mcr‐1 is of great concern globally. In the One Health framework, the environment is an important component for managing antimicrobial resistance. However, little information is available concerning the prevalence of mcr‐1 in water environments. We aimed to reveal the prevalence of mcr‐1 in different water environments in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Shigella spp. are water‐borne pathogens responsible for mild to severe cases bacilli dysentery all around the world known as Shigellosis. The progressively increasing of antibiotic resistance among Shigella calls for developing and establishing novel alternative therapeutic methods. The present study aimed to evaluate a novel phage cocktail of lytic phages against Extended Spectrum Beta Lactamase (ESBL) isolates of Shigella species in an aquatic environment.

Listeria monocytogenes is an opportunistic pathogen with the ability to adapt to different environmental conditions, resulting in safety issues for food producers. Foods contaminated by L. monocytogenes can represent a risk if consumed by susceptible individuals such as elderly, pregnant women and the immunocompromised. The aim of this study was to evaluate the genetic diversity of a collection of L. monocytogenes isolated from different matrices in Brazil during the period of 1979‐2015.

Endophytic fungi are broadly dispersed residing inside plant tissues and have been demonstrated as a treasure for bioactive natural products. Unexplored harsh and heavy metal contaminant habitat of Avicennia marina may have diverse and potential fungal association. Therefore, this work aimed to isolate the culturable fungal endophytes associated with leaves of A. marina and to evaluate their medical potentialities.

Carvacrol has been recognized as an efficient growth inhibitor of food pathogens. However, carvacrol oil is poorly water‐soluble and can be oxidized, decomposed or evaporated when exposed to the air, light, or heat. To overcome these limitations, a carvacrol nanoemulsion was developed and its antimicrobial activity against food pathogens evaluated in this study.

The loop‐mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) technique was used to investigate six salmonella‐specific sequences for their suitability to serve as targets for the pathogen identification. Sequences selected for designing LAMP primers were genes invA, bcfD, phoP, siiA, gene62181533 and a region within the ttrRSBCA locus. Primers including single nucleotide polymorphisms were configured as degenerate primers.

Contamination of ready‐to‐eat (RTE) foods by pathogenic bacteria may predispose consumers to foodborne diseases. This study investigated the presence of bacterial contaminants and their antibiotic susceptibility patterns in three locally processed RTE foods (eko, fufu and zobo) vended in urban markets in Ogun state, Nigeria.

A triplex‐PCR assay was developed and evaluated for rapid detection of methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) recovered from various biological samples of pig. Three sets of primers were designed to target mecA, 16S rRNA and nuc genes of MRSA. The specific amplification generated 3 bands on agarose gel, with sizes 280 bp for mecA, 654 bp for 16S rRNA and 481 bp for nuc, respectively.

One of the main impacts of urban sprawl in rapidly growing countries has been contamination of coastal environments by waterborne pathogens, posing a critical risk to ecosystem and human health. Microbial source tracking (MST) has been a robust tool to identify the origin of these pathogens globally. This study compared the occurrence of a human‐associated Bacteroides marker (BT‐α) with faecal indicator bacteria (FIB) in an urban estuary (Golden Horn, Istanbul, Turkey).

This research aims to investigate the presence and pathogenic potential of Arcobacter in poultry meat samples purchased in the retail market of Valdivia (South of Chile) as well as in fecal samples from backyard chickens from rural areas around this city. The isolates obtained were identified by molecular methods. Furthermore, putative virulence genes were assessed by PCR and the antimicrobial resistance was tested by phenotypic methods.

Recent studies have shown that Salmonella shedding status affects sows’ microbiota during gestation and that these modifications are reflected in the faecal microbiota of their piglets at weaning.

Significance and Impact of the Study: Blown pack spoilage of vacuum packaged beef caused by Clostridium estertheticum and Clostridium gasigenes is a significant problem for the beef industry. At present, control is reliant on regular disinfection of the abattoir and equipment with sporicidal agents, but it has been suggested that preventing contamination of cattle at the source could be more effective. This study provides evidence that BPS Clostridium spp.

Campylobacter spp. is the leading cause of bacterial gastroenteritis worldwide and poultry are the primary reservoir. The aim of this study was to investigate the survival and/or growth of C. jejuni NCTC 11168 in broiler digestate prepared from commercial starter, grower and finisher feed formulations. Bolton broth and digestates were prepared, inoculated with C. jejuni NCTC 11168 (approximately 3 log10 CFU per ml) and incubated under microaerobic conditions at 42°C for 24 hours.

Successful human norovirus (HuNoV) cultivation in stem cell‐derived human intestinal enteroids (HIE) was recently reported. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the anti‐HuNoV efficacy of two alcohol‐based commercial hand sanitizers and 60% ethanol by suspension assay using RNase‐RT‐qPCR, with subsequent validation of efficacy by HuNoV cultivation using the HIE model.

Significance and Impact of the Study: Campylobacter fetus subsp. venerealis (Cfv) is frequently associated with lowered fertility and abortion in ruminants. These infections are responsible for significant reproductive wastage in infected beef and dairy herds and may reduce gross profit margins up to 66%. In India, decreased fertility rates in productive animals are traditionally attributed to brucellosis.

Clostridium difficile (C.difficile) can cause antibiotic‐associated diarrhea or pseudo‐membranous colitis in humans and animals. Currently, the various methods such as microbiological culture,cytotoxic assay, ELISA and PCR have been used to detect Clostridium difficile infection (CDI). These conventional methods, however, require long detection time and professional staff.

Significance and Impact of the Study: Surfactants with emulsifying bioactivity are known to be produced by Bacillus subtilis. Here, a colorimetric assay for methylene blue active substances is adapted for use in bacterial plaque to describe surfactant bioactivity, and supplemental salts of calcium during culture are shown to enrich cultured plaque for said bioactivity. Where B.

The emergence of novel resistant markers hampers the efficacy of beta‐lactam antibiotics to treat infections caused by microrganisms carrying such resistances. This study investigated the antimicrobial susceptibility pattern, the carpapenem associated determinants and the molecular epidemiology of Klebsiella pneumoniae showing a New Delhi (NDM) metallo‐β‐lactamase phenotype, isolated from a patient admitted to intensive care unit of the main hospital for acute care of Molise region, cent

Significance and Impact of the Study: Due to the resistance of the Plasmodium parasite to antimalarial drugs, only a few attempts have been made to use nanocarriers with the specific targeting approach in malaria treatment. In this article, we verified the antioxidant and anti‐inflammatory activity of silver nanoparticles prepared from Indigofera oblongifolia extract (AgNPs) against the Plasmodium chabaudi‐induced infection in mice spleen.

This study aims to investigate the gut microbiota and metabolites in breastfed infants with breast milk jaundice (BMJ) using gut microbiome‐metabolomics. Breastfed newborns diagnosed with BMJ and those without BMJ (control group) were enrolled. Fecal samples were collected from the participants and subjected to high‐throughput sequencing of the 16s rDNA V3 and V4 regions of the gut flora and metabolomics of short‐chain fatty acids (SCFAs).

ABSTRACT Antimicrobial resistance is a global emergency which needs one health approach to address. The present study was conducted to detect the prevalence of beta‐lactamase and biofilm‐producing‐Klebsiella strains in rectal swabs (n=624) collected from healthy dogs, cats, sheep and goats reared as companion or household animals in India.

Significance and Impact of the Study: In this study, we investigated phenotypic and genotypic antimicrobial resistance characteristics by a novel method based on epidemiological cut‐off values. This is the second comprehensive study on the antimicrobial susceptibility characteristics of Aeromonas species using NRI and epidemiological cut‐off values.

Significance and impact of the study: The emergence of carbapenemases and extended‐spectrum β‐lactamases (ESBLs) in bacteria has now become a global problem leading to failure of advanced antimicrobial therapy. We report for the first time the blaNDM‐1 gene in non‐fermenting Gram‐negative bacterial isolates, and the blaKPC‐2 gene in an Escherichia coli isolate from goat meat in India.

Significance and Impact of the Study: The role of probiotics in alleviation of the novel COVID‐19 has not been established. This review provides an insight about the anti‐inflammatory, antiviral effects of probiotics in vitro, animal models and human. The latter can provide an indirect evidence and/or hypothesis‐driven approach to investigate the use of probiotics as adjunctive therapy in the prophylaxis and/or alleviation of COVID‐19 symptoms.

Significance and Impact of the Study: It has been suggested in the recent literature that some countries have lower case rates or death rates of Covid‐19 as a result of large‐scale BCG vaccination programs. This has resulted in the initiation of clinical trials to assess if the vaccine can act as a prophylactic or ameliorate the disease.