Research Publications (Food Safety)

Occupational exposure to heavy metals like lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) is associated with the development of several diseases. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of occupational co-exposure to Pb and Cd on the blood levels of selected immune-modulatory cytokines related to T helper (Th), that is, Th1, interleukin-2 (IL-2), Th2, (IL-4 and IL-10), and Th17, (IL-17) cells. The study comprised 207 individuals divided into two groups: exposed (n = 110) and nonexposed (n = 97).

Human exposure to cadmium (Cd) may induce severe effects in different organs. Recent studies suggest that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are closely involved in the pathophysiological mechanisms of Cd-related diseases.

Epidemiological evidence suggests that the metabolic profiles of each individual exposed to arsenic (As) are related to the risk of cancer, coronary heart disease, and diabetes. The arsenite methyltransferase (AS3MT) gene plays a key role in As metabolism. Several single nucleotide polymorphisms in the AS3MT gene may affect both enzyme activity and gene transcription.

Extended shelf-life of many foods is a modern requirement that has been achieved by means of fossil-based plastic films despite their environmental issues. Recently, starch-based, fully biodegradable thermoplastics are gaining momentum as packaging material; however, if they are in contact with food, aspects such storage, water interaction and spoilage due to microorganisms must be considered.

With shrapnel injuries, the metal fragment is usually left in place to reduce the risk of morbidity extensive surgery might bring. This means the individual may retain those metals for the remainder of their life. Often the long-term health effects of the embedded metal are not known, especially with respect to protein damage and perturbations of muscle repair pathways.

Essential oils with antimicrobial or antioxidant activities have received extensive attention among customers, manufacturers, and food scientists, especially with rising worries about the safety of synthetic food preservatives. However, like other functional lipid compounds their incorporation into aqueous systems is challenging, due to their less water solubility. Furthermore, their susceptibility to light, moisture, heat, and oxygen origins their less chemical and structural stabilities.

The antibacterial and antibiofilm activity of essential oil of clove against Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella Enteritidis were investigated. The chemical composition of the oil was characterized by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Stock solution of the essential oil of clove was prepared in 95% (v/v) ethanol (EOC). The antibacterial assays were performed by disk diffusion assay and minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC).

In fresh-cut vegetables, plant tissues are often challenged by (a)biotic stresses that act in combination, and the response to combinatorial stresses differs from that triggered by each individually. Phenolic induction by wounding is a known response contributing to increase products phenolic content. Heat application is a promising treatment in minimal processing, and its interference on the wound-induced response is produce-dependent.

Zingiber officinale essential oil (ZEO) was encapsulated in chitosan nanoparticles at different concentrations using the emulsion-ionic gelation technique and its antioxidant and antibacterial effects were investigated. The results indicated that ZEO level had a significant effect on encapsulation efficiency (EE), loading capacity (LC), particle size and zeta potential.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the detrimental effect of ultrasound application, as an alternative to pasteurization, on raw goat milk microorganisms and some food pathogens including Brucella melitensis. For this purpose, six different ultrasound applications with a power of 20 kHz at 100%, 50% and 10% amplitudes with or without pulsation were practiced.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of certain essential oils (star anise, lemon leaves, marjoram, fennel, and lavender) on the fungal growth of Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus and their production of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1). The degree of suppression of the aflatoxigenic strains’ growth and their production of AFB1 is mainly affected by the kind and the concentration of the tested essential oils (EOs).

The objective of this study was to develop a quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) model to evaluate potential risk mitigation strategies to reduce the probability of acquiring hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) associated with beef consumption in Argentina. Five scenarios were simulated to evaluate the effect of interventions on the probability of acquiring HUS from Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC)-contaminated ground beef and commercial hamburger consumption.

Wheat filter flour is a by-product derived from the modern wheat milling process. In this study, the influence of plasticizer type (glycerol (G) and sorbitol (S)) and content (25, 35, and 45 g/100 g polymer) on the wheat filter flour-based film was evaluated. Regardless of plasticizer type, increasing the plasticizer content enhanced moisture content, water solubility, and water vapor permeability of film samples.

The aim of this work was to reinforce actions tending to reduce Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) in beef products from an Argentinean commercial abattoir implementing Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) practices. An environmental stx map was built with 421 environmental samples from the slaughter, quartering, cool chamber and deboning sectors (February-May 2013). For stx determination, 125 carcass and 572 anatomical cut samples were used.

This study isolated lactic acid bacteria from commercially available probiotic foods to determine their capacity to remove aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and trichothecene-2 (T-2). The removal rates by original live and heat-treated cells of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were compared to test the effect of heat treatment on efficacy. LAB is capable to remove up to 46% of AFB1 and up to 45% of T-2 toixn.

Journal of Food Science, EarlyView. Hummus is a popular dip in the Middle East region prepared by mixing the boiled chickpeas with tahini and other ingredients, and because its consumption has increased world-wide some notoriety has developed following an increase in the incidence of hummus-related illness outbreaks and recalls.

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), a naturally produced toxin existing in major food crops, is highly toxic and carcinogenic to human and animals. In this study, a reusable material, Pd@PCN-222 with great adsorption performance and peroxidase-like activity was synthesized for the removal of AFB1. Pd@PCN-222 exhibited great adsorption performance owing to hierarchical porous structure.

Gut microbial community plays an important role in the regulation of insect health. Antibiotic treatment is powerful to fight bacterial infections, while it also causes collateral damage to gut microbiome, which may have long-lasting consequences for host health.

Infective endocarditis (IE) involving mitral annular calcification (MAC) is a rare disease, but is potentially lethal due to frequent serious periannular complications, and therefore requires early diagnosis and prompt treatment. However, either reaching the correct diagnosis or the detection of periannular complications, even with conventional transesophageal echocardiography (TEE), remains challenging because calcium deposition obscures clear visualization of the area around the MAC.

The present pandemic situation has increased demand for functional foods that enhance all aged groups' people immunity against COVID-19. This factor has led to innovation in snack market because healthy and good quality snack products are lacking. In this study, attempt has been made to develop functional snack bar that is beneficial for malnourished population from various combinations of amaranth grain, oat, and banana peel powder.

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/furans (PCDD/Fs) and dioxin-like PCBs (DL-PCBs) were examined in chicken egg and soil samples collected from Dong Nai Province, southern Vietnam. PCDD/F and DL-PCB levels in egg samples ranged from 5.74 to 1320 (median 350) and from 120 to 51,200 (median 1470) pg/g lipid weight (lw), respectively. Toxic equivalents to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TEQ) in egg samples ranged from 0.817 to 245 (median 10.8) pg TEQ/g lw.

The role of iron plaque in Miscanthus sacchariflorus seedling growth and cadmium ion (Cd2+) uptake, translocation, and tolerance was explored. The seedlings were cultivated for 10 d in half-strength Hoagland’s nutrient solution containing 0 mg L−1, 1.0 mg L−1, 5.0 mg L−1, 10.0 mg L−1, and 20.0 mg L−1 Cd2+ after iron plaque formation induced by 30 mg L−1 ferrous ion (Fe2+).

Toxoplasma gondii is one of the most common zoonotic protozoan parasites. It has three major infectious stages: rapidly multiplying tachyzoites (Tz), slowly replicating bradyzoites (Bz) and a resting/free-living stage, sporozoites (Sz). The regulatory mechanisms governing stage-specific gene expression are not fully understood. Few transcriptional start sites (TSS) are known for Sz. In this study, we obtained TSS of Sz using an oligo-capping method and RNA-seq analysis.

The antibiotic susceptibility patterns were correlated with particular spa types, and this correlation would help physicians select appropriate antibiotics for treatment of invasive MRSA infections. The aim of this research was to investigate invasive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) through delineatingthe molecular typing results and correlating them with antibiotic susceptibility.

Listeria monocytogenes causes listeriosis with a high mortality rate. This study systematically reviewed the antibiotic susceptibility of L. monocytogenes in the world. A literature search was done and the data of 33 studies that matched with the inclusion criteria, were used for meta-analysis. The random-effect model meta-analysis was applied to determine the frequency of overall L. monocytogenes and its antibiotic non-sensitive isolates.