Research Publications (Food Safety)

Hepatitis E infection is typically caused by contaminated water or food. In July and August 2022, an outbreak of hepatitis E was reported in a nursing home in Zhejiang Province, China. Local authorities and workers took immediate actions to confirm the outbreak, investigated the sources of infection and routes of transmission, took measures to terminate the outbreak, and summarized the lessons learned.

Fruits, vegetables, and shellfish are often associated with outbreaks of illness caused particularly by human norovirus (HuNoV) and hepatitis A virus (HAV), the leading causative agents of foodborne illness worldwide.

Human noroviruses (HuNoVs) are the most predominant viral agents of acute gastroenteritis. Vegetables are important vehicles of HuNoVs transmission. This study aimed to assess the HuNoVs prevalence in vegetables.

Norovirus (NoV) and hepatitis A virus (HAV) stand as the predominant agents associated with viral foodborne infections. Outbreaks have been documented to be caused by various types of food items, including fresh and/or frozen berries. Comprehensive data concerning crucial viral pathogens in berries remain limited and are not currently available in aggregate form. Consequently, the present study aimed to compile the existing information regarding the prevalence of NoV and HAV in this matrix.

Hepatitis E (HEV), a zoonotic virus, is the leading cause of acute viral hepatitis in Europe. The presence of HEV in domestic pigs can result in infections in humans through consumption of pork products which are undercooked or where processing methods are insufficient to inactivate the virus.

Oysters are recognized as important vectors for human norovirus transmission in the environment. Whether norovirus binds to bacteria in oyster digestive tissues (ODTs) remains unknown. To shed light on this concern, ODT-54 and ODT-32, positive for histo-blood group antigen (HBGA) -like substances, were isolated from ODTs and identified as Pseudomonas composti and Enterobacter cloacae, respectively.

Root vegetables, which are in close contact with soil, are particularly vulnerable to soil contamination or decay as they can be contaminated from multiple sources, including primary production and processing. This study investigated effective washing conditions to reduce the microbial contamination of potatoes by using soaking and shaking in the washing process.

Zoonotic hepatitis E virus (HEV) genotype 3 infections are the predominant cause of acute viral hepatitis in Europe, mostly associated with the consumption of HEV contaminated pork meat. In this study we looked at the HEV RNA positivity rate of pork meat products readily available from Belgian supermarkets and evaluated the overall HEV consumer exposure in a Belgian context.

Oysters and mussels are important vectors for norovirus (NoV). An efficient pretreatment method for NoV detection in oysters based on ISO 15216-2:2019 was established in our previous work, but its effectiveness for other types of shellfish remains unknown. Therefore, this study systematically compared the differences between the standard and modified ISO methods in detecting NoV for oysters and mussels.

Berries are important vehicles for norovirus (NoV) and hepatitis A virus (HAV) foodborne outbreaks. Sensitive and quantitative detection of these viruses in food samples currently relies on RT-qPCR, but remains challenging due to their low concentration and the presence of RT-qPCR inhibitors. Moreover, quantification requires a standard curve.

Between 2016 and 2021, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) collected 4218 samples of fresh and frozen berries (blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and mixed berries) and pomegranate arils at retail across 11 major cities in Canada and tested these samples for the presence of norovirus GI, norovirus GII and hepatitis A virus RNA.

Hepatitis E is caused by hepatitis E virus (HEV), one of the causes of acute viral hepatitis. Domestic pigs are considered as the main reservoir of HEV-3. The recently reported high prevalence of HEV in liver- and meat products on the Dutch market warranted a cross-sectional prevalence study on HEV infection among 5–6 months old pigs slaughtered in the Netherlands (n = 250).

Viruses are a leading cause of foodborne disease worldwide. Human norovirus and hepatitis viruses (hepatitis A (HAV) and hepatitis E (HEV)) are recognised to be the main viruses of importance to public health. The ISO 15216 procedure describes molecular methods for detecting HAV and norovirus in bottled water by using an electropositive filter to concentrate viruses.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is an emerging pathogen in industrialized countries. HEV infections in humans are mainly related to the HEV-3 genotype, predominant in Europe and widespread in wild boars' food products.

Bivalve mollusks have been widely recognized as an important source of foodborne virus. The aim of this work was to determine the presence of norovirus (NoV) and rotavirus (RVA) in Pacific cupped oyster (Crassostrea gigas) from Buenos Aires, Argentina. A total of 88 oyster were processed. 7% of pooled samples resulted positive for NoV GII by RT-qPCR. The nucleotide analysis showed that it was closely related to GII.4/Sydney.

Author(s): Eric Jubinville, Mathilde Trudel-Ferland, Janie Amyot, Julie Jean

Author(s): Mengxiao Song, Md. Iqbal Hossain, Soontag Jung, Daseul Yeo, Zhaoqi Wang, Ae Min, Ziwei Zhao, Sunho Park, Changsun Choi

Author(s): Julia S. Sobolik, Kira L. Newman, Lee-Ann Jaykus, Elizabeth A. Bihn, Juan S. Leon

Author(s): Trond Møretrø, Christophe Nguyen-The, Pierrine Didier, Isabelle Maître, Tekla Izsó, Gyula Kasza, Silje E. Skuland, Maria João Cardoso, Vania B. Ferreira, Paula Teixeira, Daniela Borda, Loredana Dumitrascu, Corina Neagu, Anca Ioana Nicolau, Eduard Anfruns-Estrada, Mike Foden, Phil Voysey, Solveig Langsrud

Author(s): Jade Derrick, Philippa Hollinghurst, Sarah O'Brien, Nicola Elviss, David J. Allen, Miren Iturriza-Gómara

Author(s): René A.M. Dirks, Claudia C.C. Jansen, Geke Hägele, Ans J.T. Zwartkruis-Nahuis, Aloys S.L. Tijsma, Ingeborg L.A. Boxman

Author(s): Sangha Han, Ji yeon Jo, Sa Reum Park, Changsun Choi, Sang-Do Ha

Author(s): Mohamad Eshaghi Gorji, Malcolm Tan Turk Hsern, Dan Li