Research Publications (Food Safety)

by William R. Hardin, Germain C. M. Alas, Nikita Taparia, Elizabeth B. Thomas, Melissa C. Steele-Ogus, Kelli L. Hvorecny, Aaron R. Halpern, Pavla Tůmová, Justin M. Kollman, Joshua C. Vaughan, Nathan J. Sniadecki, Alexander R. Paredez Attachment to the intestinal epithelium is critical to the lifestyle of the ubiquitous parasite Giardia lamblia. The ventrolateral flange is a sheet-like membrane protrusion at the interface between parasites and attached surfaces.

Background World population growth, climate change, food distribution and the current pandemic are some of the main factors that affect food security. Traditional farming techniques, although a vital lifeline for our survival, are increasingly generating large amounts of harmful greenhouse emissions as the global population expands significantly. It is essential, therefore, to investigate alternative methods to supplement current food sources.

Traditional culture-based detection methods for Campylobacteri jejuni, a leading cause of human bacterial gastroenteritis worldwide, are time-consuming, cumbersome, and lacking in reliability. While polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been frequently used for pathogen testing, it might generate false-negative results due to inadequate sensitivity. This study was the first to explore novel single-tube nested PCR (STN-PCR) to detect pathogens in food.

Ochratoxin A (OTA) has harmful effects to human and animal health; therefore, sensitive and selective detection of OTA is highly demanded. Herein, an ultrasensitive electrochemical aptasensor electrode comprising electrospun MXene/polyvinylidene fluoride (Ti3C2Tx/PVDF) nanofiber composite is presented. Addition of Ti3C2Tx up to 13% effectively increased the fiber diameter and lowered the β -phase of PVDF nanofibers, consequently lowering the charge transfer resistance.

The present study investigated the attenuating effects of Zn following Cd-exposure in the activities/expression of indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase (IDO), tryptophan 2, 3-dioxygenase (TDO), oxidative-inflammatory response, behavioral indices and histologic architecture in cerebral cortex and hippocampus of male rats. Adult male Wistar rats were exposed to 200 μg/L and 100 μg/L of Cd and/or Zn in drinking water for 42 days.

The mycotoxin zearalenone (ZEA) in food and feed seriously harms human and animal health. How to reduce its toxicity is an important direction of current research on food safety. This study aim to assess the effects of procyanidins (PC) on cell apoptosis caused by ZEA and to clarify the role of Nrf2 in the process. Swine testicle (ST) cells were treated with ZEA (57.5 μmol/L) and/or PC (10 mg/L) for 24 h. Cell viability was detected by CCK-8 assay.

In 2008, an EU wide baseline survey of broilers revealed a high Campylobacter prevalence. To assist with industry-wide controls, updated data were required. The primary objective of this study was to establish up-to-date data on Campylobacter carriage and carcass contamination in Irish broilers. Monthly samples were collected from the three largest broiler processing plants in Ireland over a twelve-month period.

Zearalenone (ZEA) is a nonsteroidal estrogenic mycotoxin, which mainly contaminates grains and has estrogen-like effects on the reproductive system. Betulinic acid (BA), a natural lupane-type pentacyclic triterpene, has anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. This study aimed to investigate whether BA alleviates ZEA-induced testicular damage and explore the possible mechanism.

Campylobacter jejuni causes foodborne gastroenteritis and may trigger acute autoimmune sequelae including Guillain Barré Syndrome. Onset of neuromuscular paralysis is associated with exposure to C. jejuni lipooligosaccharide (LOS) classes A, B, C, D, and E that mimic and evoke antibodies against gangliosides on myelin and axons of peripheral nerves. Family members managing a Michigan dairy operation reported recurring C. jejuni gastroenteritis. Because dairy cattle are known to shed C.

With the advent of high throughput technology, it is now feasible to study the complex relationship of the rumen microbiota with methanogenesis in large populations of ruminant livestock divergently ranked for enteric emissions.

Background Toxoplasma gondii can infect almost all warm-blooded animals, including humans and dogs. Humans can become infected with T. gondii by petting dogs that have eaten or contacted infected cat feces. The aim of this study was to evaluate T. gondii infections in dogs from central China. From 2015 to 2021, a total of 536 dog samples (195 fecal, 81 hearts, and 260 serum samples) from Henan Province were collected. Heart juice or serum samples (n = 341) were tested for T.

Toxoplasma gondii, a major zoonotic pathogen, possess a significant genetic and phenotypic diversity that have been proposed to be responsible for the variation in clinical outcomes, mainly related to reproductive failure and ocular and neurological signs. Different T. gondii haplogroups showed strong phenotypic differences in laboratory mouse infections, which provide a suitable model for mimicking acute and chronic infections.

Background Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (SAB) is in 10% to 20% of cases complicated by infective endocarditis. Clinical prediction scores may select patients with SAB at highest risk for endocarditis, improving the diagnostic process of endocarditis.

Despite the positive effects of botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) injection into the neural arborized area, there is no anatomical evidence in the literature regarding the neural arborization of the supraspinatus muscle.

Over recent decades, the Norwegian cereal industry has had major practical and financial challenges associated with the occurrence of Fusarium head blight (FHB) pathogens and their associated mycotoxins in cereal grains. Deoxynivalenol (DON) is one of the most common Fusarium-mycotoxins in Norwegian oats, however T-2 toxin (T2) and HT-2 toxin (HT2) are also commonly detected.

Yeast cell wall-based preparations have shown efficacy against Aspergillus-based toxins but have lower impact against type-B trichothecenes. Presently, we investigated a combination of deoxynivalenol (DON), T-2 toxin (T2) and zearalenone (ZEA), and the effect of a yeast cell wall extract (YCWE) and a post-biotic yeast cell wall-based blend (PYCW) with the objectives of preventing mycotoxins’ negative effects in commercial broilers.

The use of plant-based fish feed may increase the risk of contamination by mycotoxins. The multiresidue analysis of mycotoxins in fish feed presents many difficulties due to the complexity of the matrix, the different characteristics of the compounds, and their presence in highly different concentration levels.

Bacterial biofilms are a growing problem as it is a major cause of nosocomial infection from urinary catheters to chronic tissue infections and provide resistance to a variety of antibiotics and the host’s immune system.

Staphylococcus aureus is a relevant agent of skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) in animals. Fifty-five S. aureus comprising all SSTI-related isolates in companion animals, collected between 1999 and 2018 (Lab 1) or 2017 and 2018 (Lab 2), were characterized regarding susceptibility to antibiotics and heavy metals and carriage of antimicrobial resistance determinants. Clonal lineages were established by PFGE, MLST and agr typing.

Fungicides are often used to extend the storage time of postharvest satsuma mandarin fruit. In recent years, fungicide residue has become an issue of food safety. This study aimed to investigate the distribution and migration of three typical fungicides (imazalil, prochloraz, thiophanate-methyl) in postharvest satsuma mandarins using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).

The aim of this study was to select autochthonous lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolates with antilisterial activity from Zlatar cheese and to evaluate the ability of selected LAB to control Listeria monocytogenes growth during soft white cheese production. The genotype characterization of isolated LAB (n = 93) was done using PCR method by 16S rRNA sequencing. In this way, the following isolates were detected: Lactococcus lactis ssp.

International Journal of Food Science & Technology, Accepted Article. Persian shallot is a valuable vegetable because of its nutritional value and medicinal attributes, but it has a short storage life. In the current study, the effects of curing treatments on Persian shallot postharvest decay, sprouting, color and biochemical changes were evaluated. Treatments included: control, sun curing, and convective mild air curing at 40 and 50 ºC with 1 m/s air velocity.

In recent years, massive attention has been attracted to the development and application of machine learning (ML) in the field of infectious diseases, not only serving as a catalyst for academic studies but also as a key means of detecting pathogenic microorganisms, implementing public health surveillance, exploring host-pathogen interactions, discovering drug and vaccine candidates, and so forth.

by Nora H. Al-Shaalan, Jenny Jeehan Nasr, Shereen Shalan, Areej M. El-Mahdy Veterinary medicine uses antibiotics randomly for treatment and growth promotion. Milk of dairy animals contains substantial quantities of antibiotics that have harmful effects on health. It is therefore necessary to test commercially available milk using immunological, chromatographic, or microbiological methods to confirm the absence of antibiotic residues.

The blood clam Tegillarca granosa is a commercial marine bivalve of economic value, accounting for approximately 50% of clam production in China. In recent years, the yield of blood clams has been threatened by bacterial infections caused by marine Vibrio species that thrive under a rising sea temperature.