Research Publications (Food Safety)

Abstract Listeria monocytogenes (in the meat, fish and seafood, dairy and fruit and vegetable sectors), Salmonella enterica (in the feed, meat, egg and low moisture food sectors) and Cronobacter sakazakii (in the low moisture food sector) were identified as the bacterial food safety hazards most relevant to public health that are associated with persistence in the food and feed processing environment (FFPE).

Meat analogues play an increasing role in meeting global nutritional needs. However, while it is well known that meat possesses inherent characteristics that create favourable conditions for the growth of various pathogenic bacteria, much less is known about meat analogues.

The green synthesis of silver nanoparticles offers a non-toxic, eco-friendly, economical, and efficient solution against various microorganisms. The study aimed to investigate the utilization of cocoa bean shells for the production of silver nanoparticles through green synthesis, besides its characterization and evaluation against foodborne pathogens.

Abstract Silicone rubber (SR) is widely used in the food processing industry due to its excellent physical and chemical properties. However, due to the differences in SR product production formulas and processes, the quality of commercially available SR products varies greatly, with chemical and biological hazard potentials.

Mobile colistin resistance (mcr) genes (mcr-1 to mcr-10) are plasmid-encoded genes that threaten the clinical utility of colistin (COL), one of the highest-priority critically important antibiotics (HP-CIAs) used to treat infections caused by multidrug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant bacteria in humans and animals.

Tellurite [Te(IV)] is a high-toxicity metalloid. In this study, a fungus with high Te(IV) resistance was isolated. Strain AB1 could efficiently reduce highly toxic Te(IV) to less toxic Te(0). The reduced products formed rod-shaped biogenetic Te(0) nanoparticles (Bio-TeNPs) intracellularly. Further TEM-element mapping, FTIR, and XPS analysis showed that the extracted Bio-TeNPs ranged from 100 to 500 nm and consisted of Te(0), proteins, lipids, aromatic compounds, and carbohydrates.

Eggs constitute an important part of the Moroccan diet. However, contaminated eggs can cause a serious public health problem if consumed undercooked, uncooked, or used in unpasteurized egg foodstuffs. This study was carried out to evaluate the microbial contents of eggs according to their sales sector in Morocco.

This study characterized five Cronobacter spp. and six Salmonella spp. strains that had been isolated from 155 samples of powdered infant formula (PIF) sold in Chile and manufactured in Chile and Mexico in 2018–2020. Two strains of Cronobacter sakazakii sequence type (ST) ST1 and ST31 (serotypes O:1 and O:2) and one strain of Cronobacter malonaticus ST60 (O:1) were identified.

Prior studies have demonstrated that parabens enhanced the thermal inactivation of foodborne pathogens including Cronobacter sakazakii , Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium, Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Listeria monocytogenes in model systems. However, there have been few studies looking at this phenomenon in actual food systems. The current study evaluated the potential enhancement of thermal inactivation of C.

Recently, frequent outbreaks of foodborne diseases have attracted increasing attention, and how to rapidly detect foodborne pathogens has also become an urgent issue. Herein, we reported the colorimetric sensor based on chitosan-coated magnetic nanoparticles (CS@MNPs) for rapidly broad-spectrum detection of the total bacterial count, whose color change can be visible to the naked eye without any other sophisticated instruments.

Author(s): Xinyan Yang, Yujun Jiang, Yang Song, Xue Qin, Yuwei Ren, Yueming Zhao, Chaoxin Man, Wei Zhang

Despite recent advances in Salmonella-sprout research, little is known about the relationship between Salmonella and the sprout microbiome during sprouting. Sprout spent irrigation water (SSIW) provides an informative representation of the total microbiome of this primarily aquaponic crop.

ABSTRACT While high temperature heat treatments can efficiently reduce pathogen levels, they also affect the quality and nutritional profile of foods, as well as increase the cost of processing. The food additive butyl para-hydroxybenzoate (BPB) was investigated for its potential to synergistically enhance the thermal inactivation at mild heating temperatures (54 – 58 ºC).

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) conducted a sampling assignment in 2014 to ascertain the prevalence of Cronobacter spp. and Salmonella in the processing environment of facilities manufacturing milk powder.Cronobacter was detected in the environment of 38 (69%) of 55 facilities.

Author(s): Hong Qin, Xiuquan Shi, Liang Yu, Ke Li, Jianwu Wang, Jihua Chen, Fei Yang, Haiyan Xu, Huilan Xu

In this study, we established a rapid, simple, and sensitive method for visual and point-of-care detection of Salmonella spp., Cronobacter spp., and Staphylococcus aureus in powdered infant formula (PIF) based on multiplex loop-mediated isothermal amplification (mLAMP) combined with lateral flow dipstick (LFD). Three different species-specific target genes, siiA of Salmonella spp., internal transcribed space (ITS) of Cronobacter spp., and nuc of Staph.

Enzymatic treatment is capable of removing the biofilm matrix so that the subsequent disinfection can be more effective. Abstract Bacterial biofilms are highly difficult to control, hence significant economic resources have been allocated to develop strategies to eradicate them. This study evaluated the effect of an enzymatic treatment to be used as a cleaning product to control the presence of biofilms.

Author(s): Paula Vasconcelos Costa, Luiza Vasconcellos, Ingrid Camelo da Silva, Valéria de Mello Medeiros, Stephen James Forsythe, Marcelo Luiz Lima Brandão

The microbial population of kefir made from Korean kefir grain was profiled via next‐generation sequencing technology at the species level. Interestingly, Acetobacter fabarum was the second most predominent bacteria in kefir. We isolated Acetobacter fabarum DH1801 strain and revealed its potent and broad‐spectrum antimicrobial activity against pathogenic bacteria. This could contribute to the anti‐contamination and probiotic attributes of Korean kefir.

Available online 27 May 2019

Author(s): Dongjie Chen, Yanling Cheng, Peng Peng, Juer Liu, Yunpu Wang, Yiwei Ma, Erik Anderson, Chi Chen, Paul Chen, Roger Ruan

Escherichia coli O157:H7, Cronobacter spp., and Salmonella spp. are common food-borne pathogens in milk that may cause serious diseases. In the present study, we established a simple, rapid, and specific method to simultaneously detect viable E. coli O157:H7, Cronobacter spp., and Salmonella spp. in milk. Three specific genes, fliC from E. coli O157:H7, cgcA from Cronobacter spp., and invA from Salmonella spp., were selected and used to design primers and probes.

Publication date: October 2017
, Volume 100, Issue 10

Author(s): Shuang Yu, Leina Yan, Xin Wu, Fan Li, Dong Wang, Hengyi Xu

Publication date: April 2017
, Volume 62

Author(s): Emilie Lang, Cyril Iaconelli, Fiona Zoz, Stéphane Guyot, Pablo Alvarez-Martin, Laurent Beney, Jean-Marie Perrier-Cornet, Patrick Gervais

Abstract