Advances in the Monitoring and Analysis of Foodborne Pathogens

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Microbiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2024) | Viewed by 4447

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
Interests: nanotechnology; food analysis; microorganisms; foodborne pathogens; detection; antibacterial; food packaging; food preservation
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, with the acceleration of economic globalization, food safety has become a worldwide public health hotspot. Foodborne pathogens, which cause great harm to human health and are a major hidden danger to food safety, are the primary cause of foodborne diseases and do not decrease or disappear with economic development and technological progress. Moreover, worldwide foodborne incidents occur frequently and have not been effectively controlled, indicating the food safety situation is still poor. In the 21st century, some rapid detection technologies for pathogenic microorganisms have been developed, such as radioimmunoassay and enzyme, fluorescence, time-resolved fluorescence, chemiluminescence, and bioluminescence immunoassays in immunology; nuclear acid probes; and polymerase chain reaction detection techniques. The development of relevant technologies provides an important tool for controlling the harm posed by foodborne pathogens, and this Special Issue therefore aims to present selected contributions on advances in the monitoring and analysis of foodborne pathogens by various advanced strategies.

Dr. Wentao Zhang
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • foodborne pathogens
  • food analysis
  • detection
  • food quality
  • food safety
  • nanotechnology
  • device

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 657 KiB  
Article
Screening of Anisakis-Related Allergies and Associated Factors in a Mediterranean Community Characterized by High Seafood Consumption
by Santo Fruscione, Maria Barrale, Maurizio Zarcone, Davide Alba, Barbara Ravazzolo, Miriam Belluzzo, Rosa Onida, Gaetano Cammilleri, Antonella Costa, Vincenzo Ferrantelli, Alessandra Savatteri, Daniele Domenico De Bella, Salvatore Pipitone, Alida D’Atria, Alessia Pieri, Fabio Tramuto, Claudio Costantino, Carmelo Massimo Maida, Giorgio Graziano, Marialetizia Palomba, Simonetta Mattiucci, Ignazio Brusca and Walter Mazzuccoadd Show full author list remove Hide full author list
Foods 2024, 13(17), 2821; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13172821 - 5 Sep 2024
Viewed by 709
Abstract
Dietary changes expose consumers to risks from Anisakis larvae in seafood, leading to parasitic diseases and allergies. Anisakis is recognized by EFSA as a significant hazard, with potential oncogenic implications. Diagnostic advancements, like the Basophil Activation Test (BAT), enhance sensitivity and accuracy in [...] Read more.
Dietary changes expose consumers to risks from Anisakis larvae in seafood, leading to parasitic diseases and allergies. Anisakis is recognized by EFSA as a significant hazard, with potential oncogenic implications. Diagnostic advancements, like the Basophil Activation Test (BAT), enhance sensitivity and accuracy in identifying Anisakis sensitization, complementing traditional IgE tests. We conducted a cross-sectional study on patients with allergic symptoms from April 2021 to April 2023 at two outpatient clinics in western Sicily. Our goal was to assess the prevalence of Anisakis-related allergies and to identify risk profiles using specific Anisakis IgE and the BAT, especially in regions with high raw fish consumption. The study evaluated specific Anisakis IgE as a screening tool for Anisakis sensitization, using questionnaires, blood samples, and immuno-allergology analyses. Anisakis-specific IgE values were compared with the BAT results, with statistical analyses including Fisher’s exact test and logistic regression. The results showed an 18.5% seroprevalence of Anisakis IgE, while the BAT as a second-level test showed 4.63%, indicating the BAT’s superior specificity and accuracy. The study highlighted the importance of the BAT in diagnosing Anisakis sensitization, especially in cases of cross-reactivity with Ascaris and tropomyosin. The findings confirm the BAT’s exceptional specificity in identifying Anisakis sensitization and support using Anisakis-specific IgE for population-based risk profiling. The BAT can effectively serve as a confirmatory test. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Monitoring and Analysis of Foodborne Pathogens)
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17 pages, 1976 KiB  
Article
Identification of Protein Biomarkers for Differentiating Listeria monocytogenes Genetic Lineage III
by Basant Gomaa, Jingjun Lu, Hossam Abdelhamed, Michelle Banes, Olga Pechanova, Tibor Pechan, Mark A. Arick II, Attila Karsi and Mark L. Lawrence
Foods 2024, 13(9), 1302; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13091302 - 24 Apr 2024
Viewed by 1561
Abstract
Listeria monocytogenes is the causative agent of listeriosis, a severe foodborne illness characterized by septicemia, meningitis, encephalitis, abortions, and occasional death in infants and immunocompromised individuals. L. monocytogenes is composed of four genetic lineages (I, II, III, and IV) and fourteen serotypes. The [...] Read more.
Listeria monocytogenes is the causative agent of listeriosis, a severe foodborne illness characterized by septicemia, meningitis, encephalitis, abortions, and occasional death in infants and immunocompromised individuals. L. monocytogenes is composed of four genetic lineages (I, II, III, and IV) and fourteen serotypes. The aim of the current study was to identify proteins that can serve as biomarkers for detection of genetic lineage III strains based on simple antibody-based methods. Liquid chromatography (LC) with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI MS/MS) followed by bioinformatics and computational analysis were performed on three L. monocytogenes strains (NRRL B-33007, NRRL B-33014, and NRRL B-33077), which were used as reference strains for lineages I, II, and III, respectively. Results from ESI MS/MS revealed 42 unique proteins present in NRRL B-33077 and absent in NRRL B-33007 and NRRL B-33014 strains. BLAST analysis of the 42 proteins against a broader panel of >80 sequenced strains from lineages I and II revealed four proteins [TM2 domain-containing protein (NRRL B-33077_2770), DUF3916 domain-containing protein (NRRL B-33077_1897), DNA adenine methylase (NRRL B-33077_1926), and protein RhsA (NRRL B-33077_1129)] that have no homology with any sequenced strains in lineages I and II. The four genes that encode these proteins were expressed in Escherichia coli strain DE3 and purified. Polyclonal antibodies were prepared against purified recombinant proteins. ELISA using the polyclonal antibodies against 12 L. monocytogenes lineage I, II, and III isolates indicated that TM2 protein and DNA adenine methylase (Dam) detected all lineage III strains with no reaction to lineage I and II strains. In conclusion, two proteins including TM2 protein and Dam are potentially useful biomarkers for detection and differentiation of L. monocytogenes lineage III strains in clinical, environmental, and food processing facilities. Furthermore, these results validate the approach of using a combination of proteomics and bioinformatics to identify useful protein biomarkers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Monitoring and Analysis of Foodborne Pathogens)
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19 pages, 3049 KiB  
Article
New Approach Methods to Assess the Enteropathogenic Potential of Strains of the Bacillus cereus Group, including Bacillus thuringiensis
by Arnaud Fichant, Rachelle Lanceleur, Salma Hachfi, Alexandra Brun-Barale, Anne-Louise Blier, Olivier Firmesse, Armel Gallet, Valérie Fessard and Mathilde Bonis
Foods 2024, 13(8), 1140; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13081140 - 9 Apr 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1676
Abstract
Bacillus cereus (Bc) is a wide group of Gram-positive and spore-forming bacteria, known to be the etiological agents of various human infections, primarily food poisoning. The Bc group includes enteropathogenic strains able to germinate in the digestive tract and to produce enterotoxins such [...] Read more.
Bacillus cereus (Bc) is a wide group of Gram-positive and spore-forming bacteria, known to be the etiological agents of various human infections, primarily food poisoning. The Bc group includes enteropathogenic strains able to germinate in the digestive tract and to produce enterotoxins such as Nhe, Hbl, and CytK. One species of the group, Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), has the unique feature of producing insecticidal crystals during sporulation, making it an important alternative to chemical pesticides to protect crops from insect pest larvae. Nevertheless, several studies have suggested a link between the ingestion of pesticide strains and human cases of food poisoning, calling their safety into question. Consequently, reliable tools for virulence assessment are worth developing to aid decision making in pesticide regulation. Here, we propose complementary approaches based on two biological models, the human intestinal Caco-2 cell line and the insect Drosophila melanogaster, to assess and rank the enteric virulence potency of Bt strains in comparison with other Bc group members. Using a dataset of 48 Bacillus spp. strains, we showed that some Bc group strains, including Bt, were able to induce cytotoxicity in Caco-2 cells with concomitant release of IL-8 cytokine, a landmark of pro-inflammatory response. In the D. melanogaster model, we were able to sort a panel of 39 strains into four different classes of virulence, ranging from no virulence to strong virulence. Importantly, for the most virulent strains, mortality was associated with a loss of intestinal barrier integrity. Interestingly, although strains can share a common toxinotype, they display different degrees of virulence, suggesting the existence of specific mechanisms of virulence expression in vivo in the intestine. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Monitoring and Analysis of Foodborne Pathogens)
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