Research Publications (Food Safety)

Plant microbiomes play an important role in agricultural productivity, but there is still much to learn about their provenance, diversity, and organization.

Despite unfavorable Antarctic conditions, such as cold temperatures, freeze-thaw cycles, high ultraviolet radiation, dryness and lack of nutrients, microorganisms were able to adapt and surprisingly thrive in this environment. In this study, eight cold-adapted Flavobacterium strains isolated from a remote Antarctic island, James Ross Island, were studied using a polyphasic taxonomic approach to determine their taxonomic position.

Streptococcus dysgalactiae subsp. dysgalactiae (SDSD) is one of the most prevalent pathogens causing bovine mastitis worldwide. However, there is a lack of comprehensive information regarding genetic diversity, complete profiles of virulence factors (VFs), and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes for SDSD associated with bovine mastitis in China.

Invited review: Stress resistance of Cronobacter spp. affecting control of its growth during food production. By Wang et al., page 11348. In this review, we summarized Cronobacter spp. isolated from a variety of sources, including dairy products. The environmental stress resistance of Cronobacter spp. and its influencing factors were analyzed. Stress resistance is the main reason for the presence of Cronobacter in food processing environments and final products.

Author(s): Irene Martín, Alicia Rodríguez, Alberto Alía, Mónica Martínez-Blanco, Daniel Lozano-Ojalvo, Juan J. Córdoba

Author(s): Yuqi Zhang, Songtao Wang, Zongjun Gao, Hairui Zhang, Zihui Zhu, Bing Jiang, Jiutan Liu, Hongzhi Dong

Author(s): S. Yadav, P.Y. Teng, J. Choi, A.K. Singh, S. Vaddu, H. Thippareddi, W.K. Kim Poultry is the major sources of foodborne salmonellosis. Antibiotic resistance and a surge in zoonotic diseases warrant the use of natural alternatives. Glucosinolates (GLs) are naturally occurring antimicrobial compounds in rapeseed and canola.

Introduction. Antibiotic use, particularly amoxicillin-clavulanic acid in dairy farming, has been associated with an increased incidence of AmpC-hyperproducing Escherichia coli .

Ongoing inputs, in the form of sediment deposition along with associated dissolved contaminants, have challenged the assessment of cap performance at contaminated sediment sites. To address this issue, thin 2–3 cm layer sand caps amended with activated carbon (AC) were investigated for the remediation of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contaminated marine sediments using 90-day mesocosms.

Toxin-contaminated foods and beverages are a major source of illness, may cause death, and have a significant negative economic impact worldwide. Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is a potent toxin that may induce cancer after chronic low-level exposure. This study developed a quantitative recombinant AflR gene antiserum ELISA technique for aflatoxin B1 detection in contaminated food products. Aflatoxin B1 residuals from 36 food samples were analyzed with HPLC and VICAM.

This study investigates the endothelial protective activity of flavokawain A (FKA) against oxidative stress induced by ochratoxin A (OTA), which acts as a mycotoxin, and its primary mechanisms in in vitro models. Reactive oxygen species, in general, regulate oxidative stress that significantly contributes to the pathophysiology of endothelial dysfunctions. OTA exerts toxicity through inflammation and the accumulation of ROS.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) remains one of the greatest public health-perturbing crises of the 21st century, where species have evolved a myriad of defence strategies to resist conventional therapy.

Despite decades of intensive research on bacteriophage lambda, a relatively uncharacterized region remains between the exo and xis genes. Collectively, exo-xis region genes are expressed during the earliest stages of the lytic developmental cycle and are capable of affecting the molecular events associated with the lysogenic-lytic developmental decision. In Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) and enterohemorragic E.

Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, EarlyView. Rice quality deterioration will cause grievous waste of stored grain and various food safety problems. Gas detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) produced by deterioration is a nondestructive detection method to judge rice quality and alleviate rice spoilage.

The cultivated peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.), which is rich in edible oil and protein, is widely planted around the world as an oil and cash crop. However, aflatoxin contamination seriously affects the quality safety of peanuts, hindering the development of the peanut industry and threatening the health of consumers.

Calf diarrhea is one of the most concerning challenges facing both the dairy and beef cattle industry. Maintaining healthy gut microbiota is essential for preventing gastrointestinal disorders. Here, we observed significantly less bacterial richness in the abnormal feces with watery or hemorrhagic morphology compared to the normal solid feces.

Cronobacter species, in particular C. sakazakii, is an opportunistic bacterial pathogen implicated in the development of potentially debilitating illnesses in infants (<12months old). The combination of a poorly developed immune system and gut microbiota put infants at a higher risk of infection compared to other age groups.

Listeria monocytogenes is a Gram-positive bacterium causing listeriosis in animals and humans. To initiate a foodborne infection, L. monocytogenes has to pass through the host gastrointestinal tract (GIT). In this study, we evaluated survival abilities of L. monocytogenes 10403S wild type (WT) and its isogenic mutants in alternative sigma (σ) factor genes (i.e., sigB, sigC, sigH, and sigL) under simulated gastric, duodenal, and bile fluids.

Despite an increasing appreciation in the importance of host–microbe interactions in ecological and evolutionary processes, information on the gut microbial communities of some marine mammals is still lacking. Moreover, whether diet, environment, or host phylogeny has the greatest impact on microbial community structure is still unknown.

Toxoplasma gondii is a worldwide zoonotic protozoan. Donkeys are often susceptible to many pathological agents, acting as carriers of pathogens for other animal species and humans. However, data on the prevalence of T. gondii in donkeys during lactation and on the status of antibodies against T. gondii in donkey milk are lacking. A cross-sectional study evaluated the variation of the anti-T. gondii antibodies in the blood and milk of domestic donkeys during lactation.

ABSTRACT Legume root nodules harbor rhizobia and other non-nodulating endophytes known as nodule-associated bacteria (NAB) whose role in the legume symbiosis is still unknown. We analysed the genetic diversity of 34 NAB isolates obtained from the root nodules of faba bean grown under various soil conditions in Egypt using 16S rRNA and concatenated sequences of three housekeeping genes.

ABSTRACT The spread of antibiotic resistance in the water environment has been widely described. However, still many knowledge gaps exist regarding the selection pressure from antibiotics, heavy metals and other substances present in surface waters as a result of anthropogenic activities, as well as the extent and impact of this phenomenon on aquatic organisms and humans.

Background The etiology and optimal clinical management of acute febrile illness (AFI) is poorly understood. Methods Blood samples taken from study participants with acute fever (≥37.5°C) or a history of fever and recruited into the previous Typhoid Fever Surveillance in Africa (TSAP) study were evaluated using a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based TaqMan-Array Card designed to detect a panel of bacterial, viral, and parasitic pathogens.

Background As children with isolated vomiting are rarely able to provide a specimen suitable for routine pathogen testing, we have limited knowledge about their infecting pathogens. Methods Between December 2014 and August 2018, children <18 years old with presumed acute gastroenteritis who presented to 2 emergency departments (EDs) in Alberta, Canada, were recruited.

Background QuantiFERON enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA; Qiagen) with Borrelia burgdorferi peptide antigens was previously shown to reliably detect interferon-γ (IFN-γ) in blood samples from adult patients with early Lyme disease and the response disappeared rapidly after treatment. We evaluated the response before and after appropriate antibiotic therapy in adolescent and adult subjects with more diverse stages of the illness.