Research Publications (Food Safety)

Abstract

The present study evaluated differences in the tetrodotoxin (TTX)/saxitoxins (STXs) selectivity between marine and freshwater pufferfish by performing in vivo and in vitro experiments. In the in vivo experiment, artificially reared nontoxic euryhaline freshwater pufferfish Dichotomyctere fluviatilis were intrarectally administered a mixture of TTX (24 nmol/fish) and STX (20 nmol/fish). The amount of toxin in the intestine, liver, muscle, gonads, and skin was quantified at 24, 48, and 72 h.

The apple is one of the most important fruit tree crops in the Mediterranean region. Lebanon, in particular, is among the top apple producer countries in the Middle East; however, recently, several types of damage, particularly rot symptoms, have been detected on fruits in cold storage. This study aims to identify the causal agents of apple decay in Lebanese post-harvest facilities and characterize a set of 39 representative strains of the toxigenic fungus Penicillium.

Mycotoxins are a crucial problem for poultry production worldwide. Two of the most frequently found mycotoxins in feedstuffs are deoxynivalenol (DON) and fumonisins (FUM) which adversely affect gut health and poultry performance. The current knowledge on DON and FUM effects on broiler responses relevant for gut detoxification, antioxidant capacity, and health is still unclear.

Inactivation of the lipooligosaccharide (LOS) biosynthesis genes lpxA, lpxC and lpxD by ISAba insertion elements results in high-level resistance to colistin in A. baumannii. In the present study, we quantify the rate of spontaneous insertional inactivation of LOS biosynthesis genes by ISAba elements in the ATCC 19606-type strain and two multidrug clinical isolates.

Abscess formation is a common complication of severe life-threatening infections caused by obligate anaerobes. Fusobacterium necrophorum is among the frequently detected anaerobic pathogens from clinical specimens associated with liver abscesses, skin and soft tissue infections, or oral abscesses. The antimicrobial therapy for this kind of infection needs to be optimized. Here, we examined the possibility of treating F.

by Mel V. Boo, Shit F. Chew, Yuen K. Ip

by Tze Chiew Christie Soo, Subha Bhassu

by Alba García-Villafranca, Lucía Barrera-López, Marta Pose-Bar, Elva Pardellas-Santiago, Jonathan G. Montoya-Valdés, Emilio Paez-Guillán, Ignacio Novo-Veleiro, Antonio Pose-Reino

Background

Non-convulsive status epilepticus (NCSE) often goes unnoticed and is not easily detected in patients with a decreased level of consciousness, especially in older patients. In this sense, lack of data in this population is available.

Aims

by Yohanis Alemeshet Asefa, Bezatu Mengistie Alemu, Negga Baraki, Dinku Mekbib, Dechasa Adare Mengistu

Background

Biological deterioration of drinking water is the major cause of waterborne disease globally. However, there is a paucity of information on identifying the point where deterioration of the bacteriological quality of drinking water occurs (source or point of use) and associated factors among households in developing countries, especially in Ethiopia.

Author(s): Paula Kuchheuser, Marc Birringer

Author(s): Rajashri Banerji, Anjali Mahamune, Sunil D. Saroj

Abstract Increasing evidence suggests that antibiotic administration causes gut injury, negatively affecting nutrient digestion, immune regulation, and colonization resistance against pathogens due to the disruption of gut microbiota. However, the time-course effects of therapeutic antibiotics on alterations of gut microbes and short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in young swine are still unknown.

Heavy metal contamination due to anthropogenic activities is a great threat to modern humanity. A novel and natural technique of bioremediation using microbes for detoxification of heavy metals while improving plants’ growth is the call of the day.

Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan is a heavy industry area in China. Many studies just focused on the basic contamination statues of heavy metals there; however, few of them had a deep study on chemical species in micro aggregate or samples with different particle sizes. This study focused on a comprehensive research of Pb in typical arable soil collected from Zhuzhou. Soil properties, particle size distributions, and Pb chemical species in different soil particles were investigated.

In veterinary medicine, the issue of antimicrobial resistance was mainly addressed in food-producing animals (although companion animals also deserve attention). Indeed, these species may be reservoir of resistant microorganisms, such as extended-spectrum β-lactamase and AmpC (ESBL/AmpC)-producing bacteria. Dogs in particular may transmit them to close-contact humans.

Following a surge in the prevalence of chloramphenicol-resistant methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in Kuwait hospitals, this study investigated the genotypes and antibiotic resistance of the chloramphenicol-resistant isolates to ascertain whether they represented new or a resurgence of sporadic endemic clones. Fifty-four chloramphenicol-resistant MRSA isolates obtained in 2014–2015 were investigated. Antibiotic resistance was tested by disk diffusion and MIC determination.

Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, Accepted Article. Scope
: The aim of the present study was to develop physiologically-based kinetic (PBK) models for rat and human that include intestinal microbial and hepatic metabolism of zearalenone (ZEN) in order to predict systemic concentrations of ZEN and to obtain insight in the contribution of metabolism by the intestinal microbiota to the overall metabolism of ZEN.

Journal of Applied Toxicology, EarlyView. The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor that mediates the toxicity of halogenated and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in vertebrates. Thus, increased knowledge of AhR-mediated responses to xenobiotics is imperative. Sebastes schlegelii is increasingly being used as a model for studying environmental toxicology; hence, in this study, the presence of AhR2 was evaluated in S. schlegelii.

A mutant of Listeria monocytogenes ScottA with a transposon in the 5' untranslated region of the asnB gene was identified to be hypersensitive to the antimicrobial t-cinnamaldehyde. Here, we report the functional characterization of AsnB in peptidoglycan (PG) modification and intracellular infection.

Spatial organization of chemotactic proteins is important for cooperative response to external stimuli. However, factors affecting the localization dynamics of chemotaxis proteins are less studied. According to some reports, had found that the polar localization of chemotaxis system I is induced by hypoxia and starvation in Vibrio cholerae. However, in V. cholerae, the chemotaxis system I is not involved in flagellum-mediated chemotaxis, and it may play other alternative cellular functions.

Phosphorous (P) deficiency is a major challenge faced by global agriculture. Phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) provide a sustainable approach to supply available phosphates to plants with improved crop productivity through synergistic interaction with plant roots. The present study demonstrates an insight into this synergistic P-solubilizing mechanism of PSB isolated from rhizosphere soils of major wheat-growing agro-ecological zones of Pakistan.

Kyrgyzstan has one of the highest rates of HIV-1 spread in Central Asia. In this study, we used molecular–epidemiological approaches to examine the HIV-1 epidemic in Kyrgyzstan. Samples were obtained from HIV-positive individuals who visited HIV/AIDS clinics. Partial pol gene sequences were used to identify HIV-1 subtypes and drug resistance mutations (DRMs) and to perform phylogenetic analysis.

Background

by David M. Bland, Adélaïde Miarinjara, Christopher F. Bosio, Jeanette Calarco, B. Joseph Hinnebusch