Research Publications (Food Safety)

The aims of this study were (i) to evaluate the performance of the Assurance® GDS method combining immunomagnetic separation and real-time PCR for STEC detection in pooled samples (up to 375g) of vegetables and meat, and (ii) to compare its performances to that of the reference method ISO/TS-13136:2012 (25 g sample size) in artificially contaminated samples.

Traditional kosher meat processing involves the following steps after slaughtering: soaking with water to remove blood, salting to help draw out more blood, and rinsing to remove salt. However, the impact of the salt used on foodborne pathogens and beef quality is not well understood.

The aim of this study was to compare the growth of non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) with E. coli O157:H7 in ground beef and modified Tryptic Soy Broth (TSB). Additionally, the performance of three available models (ComBase, Huang et al. model, and Cepeda et al. model) for predicting STEC growth in ground beef was evaluated. To achieve this, eleven groups of STEC, including E.

Background Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is a zoonotic pathogen, that is transmitted from a variety of animals, especially cattle to humans via contaminated food, water, feaces or contact with infected environment or animals. The ability of STEC strains to cause gastrointestinal complications in human is due to the production of Shiga toxins (sxt).

Thermal-death-time characteristics, D- and z-values of shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), Salmonella, and Enterococcus faecium NRRL B-2354 were investigated in peanut butter, oatmeal, and chocolate chip cookie formulations at three moisture levels. E. faecium was shown to be more resistant than Salmonella, followed by E. coli at all water activity levels. E.

Introduction The objective of this study was to develop, using a genome wide machine learning approach, an unambiguous model to predict the presence of highly pathogenic STEC in E. coli reads assemblies derived from complex samples containing potentially multiple E. coli strains. Our approach has taken into account the high genomic plasticity of E. coli and utilized the stratification of STEC and E.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are foodborne pathogens causing severe diseases. The ability of STEC to produce disease is associated with Shiga toxin (Stx) production. We investigated the occurrence of STEC on bovine and pork carcasses and walls of trucks where they were transported, and we characterized virulence genes and serotypes of STEC strains.

Swine pathogenic infection caused by Escherichia coli, known as swine colibacillosis, represents an epidemiological challenge not only for animal husbandry but also for health authorities. To note, virulent E. coli strains might be transmitted, and also cause disease, in humans. In the last decades, diverse successful multidrug-resistant strains have been detected, mainly due to the growing selective pressure of antibiotic use, in which animal practices have played a relevant role.

Introduction

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is a zoonotic pathogen that cause food-borne diseases in humans. Cattle and derived foodstuffs play a known role as reservoir and vehicles, respectively. In Uruguay, information about the characteristics of circulating STEC in meat productive chain is scarce. The aim was to characterize STEC strains recovered from 800 bovine carcasses of different slaughterhouses.

Methods

The aim of the study was to investigate the safe cooking parameters to eliminate E.coli O157:H7 in commonly consumed meatball types, by simulating the meatball formula and the cooking practices of restaurants. Ground meat was inoculated around 7 ± 1 log cfu/g with a cocktail of 5 strains of E.coli O157:H7. The meatballs were prepared with different ingredients and seasonings depending on the type (kasap or İnegöl).

Recent epidemiological evidence suggests that pork products may be vehicles for the transmission of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) to humans. The severe morbidity associated with STEC infections highlights the need for research to understand the growth behavior of these bacteria in pork products. Classical predictive models can estimate pathogen growth in sterile meat.

Outbreaks of Salmonella and Shiga-toxin producing Escherichia coli (STEC) linked to wheat flour led to increased interest in characterizing the fate of Salmonella and STEC on wheat during processing. Tempering is the stage of wheat processing where water is added to toughen the bran prior to milling, which has the potential to influence pathogen behavior on the kernels.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are food-borne pathogens that can cause severe symptoms for humans. Raw milk products are often incriminated as vehicule for human STEC infection. However, raw milk naturally contains molecules, such as the milk fat globule membrane and associated proteins, that could inhibit pathogen adhesion by acting as mimetic ligands.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O121 is among the top six non-O157 serogroups that are most frequently associated with severe disease in humans. While O121:H19 is predominant, other O121 serotypes have been frequently isolated from environmental samples, but their virulence repertoire is poorly characterized.

by Anil K. Persad, Gireesh Rajashekara, Jeffrey T. LeJeune Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is estimated to cause over two million cases of human disease annually. Trinidad and Tobago is one of the largest livestock producer and consumer of sheep and goat meat in the Caribbean, however, the potential role of these animals in the epidemiology of STEC infections has not been previously described.

Antimicrobials have been important medicines used to treat various infections. However, some antibiotics increase the expression of Shiga toxin (Stx). Also, the pervasive use of persistent antibiotics has led to ecotoxicity and antibiotic resistance. In this study, a newly developed broad-spectrum and reversible antibiotic (guanylhydrazone disinfectant) was evaluated for its antibiotic activity and effects on Stx production and global transcription of bacteria.

Journal of Food Processing and Preservation, Volume 46, Issue 10, October 2022. The study investigated the effects of acidic water (sodium bisulfate, SBS/lactic acid, LA) tempering (alone) and in combination with heat treatment on the Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O121 and O26 load of wheat and its impact on wheat flour quality.

For molecular detection of foodborne pathogens to be effective, an efficient technique for bacterial DNA concentration is required. Solid phase reversible immobilization (SPRI) paramagnetic beads can concentrate DNA from foods containing low amounts of bacteria because of their highly specific DNA-binding capacity.

Journal of Food Process Engineering, EarlyView. Escherichia coli O157:H7 (STEC) is one of the hazardous foodborne pathogens in milk. Although traditional preservation methods reduce contamination, they are time-consuming or cause physicochemical changes. Therefore, we optimize STEC inactivation in goat's milk by thermosonication, an alternative to traditional treatments.

A study was conducted to validate a simulated traditional crust pepperoni pizza baking process to control Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) and to determine the heat resistance characteristics of STEC in pizza dough. Pizza dough and pepperoni slices were inoculated with 7 strains STEC cocktail and baked at 500°F (260°C) for 12 min using a conventional kitchen oven followed by 15 min of ambient air cooling.

Escherichia coli O104:H4 strain 11-3088 encoding Stx2a is epidemiologically related to the foodborne outbreak associated with sprouts in Germany, 2011. Sprouting provides suitable conditions for bacterial growth and may lead to transduction of non-pathogenic strains of E. coli with Stx phages. Although transduction of E. coli by Stx phages in food has been documented, data on the phages from E. coli O104:H4 is limited.

Shiga toxin–producing Escherichia coli (STEC) has emerged as important enteric foodborne zoonotic pathogens of considerable public health significance worldwide. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of the top seven STEC serotypes and to identify these serotypes in samples of animal source foods and vegetables. A total of 294 samples including 84 meat samples, 135 milk and dairy product samples and 75 green leafy vegetable samples were tested.

Free-living amoebae (FLA) are widely distributed protozoa in nature, known to cause severe eye infections and central nervous system disorders. There is growing attention to the potential role that these protozoa could act as reservoirs of pathogenic bacteria and, consequently, to the possibility that, the persistence and spread of the latter may be facilitated, by exploiting internalization into amoebae.

Wheat flour contaminated with Salmonella or Shiga toxin–producing Escherichia coli (STEC) has been linked to foodborne outbreaks and recalls. The survival of five strains of rifampicin-resistant Salmonella and STEC on wheat berries was evaluated during tempering (hydration). Wheat berries were inoculated with Salmonella (cocktail) or STEC (individual strains or cocktail) and dried at ambient conditions for 24 h.

Shiga toxin (stx) is the principal virulence factor of the foodborne pathogen, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157:H7 and is associated with various lambdoid bacterio (phages). A comparative genomic analysis was performed on STEC O157 isolates from cattle (n = 125) and clinical (n = 127) samples to characterize virulence genes, stx-phage insertion sites and antimicrobial resistance genes that may segregate strains circulating in the same geographic region.