The composition and microbial quality of pre-packed dates purchased in Greater Glasgow

Composition and microbiological contamination was measured in samples of pre-packed dates purchased from a number of stores and retail outlets in Greater Glasgow. The sugar content of dried pitted dates was c . 74%, about 10% more than reported on those packs where nutritional information was given. Potentially pathogenic bacteria like Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus were identified in some of the samples together with lactic acid bacteria, yeasts and moulds, Aspergillus flavus and A. parasiticus . Fresh dates were the most heavily contaminated of all samples, probably owing to the high moisture content.     

Antibacterial effects of chitosan coating containing Mentha aquatica L. essence against Escherichia coli,Staphylococcus aureus and Listeria monocytogenes in Iranian white cheese

The effect of a chitosan coating and Mentha aquatica L. essence on Iranian white cheese was investigated. Results showed 100% inhibition of Escherichia coli growth using 1.5% essence after 10 days. After 15 days of incubation, the Staphylococcus aureus population was reduced by 44.2%, 70.0%, and 88.5% using 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5% essence, respectively. After 15 days, Listeria monocytogenes growth was inhibited by 63.84%, 70.12%, and 85.9% using 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5% essence, respectively. Inhibition zone diameter studies also confirmed the antibacterial effects of applied coating against all the above‐mentioned bacteria in Iranian white cheese.     

Casamino Acids and Oxyrase enhance growth of Listeria monocytogenes in multi-pathogen enrichments

Rapid methods have been developed as relatively faster alternatives to plate culture for the detection of pathogenic bacteria in foods. However, since most rapid methods are subject to logistical limitations (e.g., sample volume size, analysis time, matrix effects) and/or a detection scheme with insufficient sensitivity needed to detect very low levels of bacteria in foods, culture enrichment is often employed to increase the concentration of targeted pathogens prior to detection. Multiplexed rapid detection platforms, capable of simultaneous detection of different bacteria in a single sample, necessitate co-enrichment (or mixed culture enrichment) of as many different targeted microorganisms as possible in a timely manner. This investigation compares the growth of four major foodborne pathogens (Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella enterica, and Yersinia enterocolitica) inoculated into pristine media or ground pork and enriched in various culture media. Initial results revealed that, after 24 h incubation, the growth of L. monocytogenes (the slowest-growing pathogen examined) was increased by approximately 1-log by the supplementation of Universal Preenrichment Broth with Casamino Acids and/or Oxyrase. Overnight (24 h) growth of L. monocytogenes in ground pork enrichment cultures was enhanced up to ca. 2-log by the addition of either Casamino Acids or Casamino Acids and Oxyrase for each of the tested growth media. Ultimately, an overnight culture of the inoculated pathogens in any of the selected media containing both Casamino Acids and Oxyrase was observed to yield target bacterial concentrations that were at sufficient levels (between 10e5 and 10e6 CFU/mL) for detection by most rapid methods.     

Discharge-based QMRA for estimation of public health risks from exposure to stormwater-borne pathogens in recreational waters in the United States

This study is the first to report a quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) on pathogens detected in stormwater discharges-of-concern, rather than relying on pathogen measurements in receiving waters. The pathogen concentrations include seven “Reference Pathogens” identified by the U.S. EPA: Cryptosporidium, Giardia, Salmonella, Norovirus, Rotavirus, Enterovirus, and Adenovirus. Data were collected from 12 sites representative of seven discharge types (including residential, commercial/industrial runoff, agricultural runoff, combined sewer overflows, and forested land), mainly during wet weather conditions during which times human health risks can be substantially elevated. The risks calculated herein therefore generally apply to short-term conditions (during and just after rainfall events) and so the results can be used by water managers to potentially inform the public, even for waters that comply with current criteria (based as they are on a 30-day mean risk). Using an example waterbody and mixed source, pathogen concentrations were used in QMRA models to generate risk profiles for primary and secondary water contact (or inhalation) by adults and children. A number of critical assumptions and considerations around the QMRA analysis are highlighted, particularly the harmonization of the pathogen concentrations measured in discharges during this project with those measured (using different methods) during the published dose–response clinical trials. Norovirus was the most dominant predicted health risk, though further research on its dose–response for illness (cf. infection) is needed. Even if the example mixed-source concentrations of pathogens had been reduced 30 times (by inactivation and mixing), the predicted swimming-associated illness rates – largely driven by Norovirus infections – can still be appreciable. Rotavirus generally induced the second-highest incidence of risk among the tested pathogens while risks for the other Reference Pathogens (Giardia, Cryptosporidium, Adenovirus, Enterovirus and Salmonella) were considerably lower. Secondary contact or inhalation resulted in considerable reductions in risk compared to primary contact. Measurements of Norovirus and careful incorporation of its concentrations into risk models (harmonization) should be a critical consideration for future QMRA efforts. The discharge-based QMRA approach presented herein is particularly relevant to cases where pathogens cannot be reliably detected in receiving waters with detection limits relevant to human health effects.     

2000-2005年广东省食品中食源性致病菌的监测与分析

为了解广东省食品中食源性致病菌的污染状况和污染水平。按国家监测网的工作手册进行了食源性致病菌的检测和菌密度测定,应用RiboPrinterMicrobial Characterization System检测分离菌株的基因指纹图谱,纸片法作药敏试验。在监测的10类2265份食品中,共分离出76株沙门菌、75株单核细胞增生性李斯特菌、161株副溶血性弧菌、2株空肠弯曲菌、2株O157∶H7大肠杆菌。5种食源性致病菌的检出率为13.95%。部分分离的菌株基因指纹图谱分析的结果是:58株沙门菌分属于22个血清型,25株单核细胞增生性李斯特菌分属于11个RP基因型,55株副溶血性弧菌分属于14个RP基因型。药敏试验结果显示,沙门菌、副溶血性弧菌、O157∶H7大肠杆菌均有多重耐药株,单核细胞增生性李斯特菌对抗生素产生耐药性的比例较低。沙门菌、单核细胞增生性李斯特菌和副溶血性弧菌阳性样品中的几何平均菌密度分别为265、96CFU/g和93MPN/100g。5种食源性致病菌对广东省食品的污染普遍存在。肉类食品和水产品的污染尤为严重,政府相关部门应尽快对畜牧养殖业抗生素的使用进行科学指导,并制定相关的法规进行监督和约束。     

Antibacterial activity of zinc oxide nanoparticle suspensions on food‐borne pathogens

Nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly recognised for their utility in biological applications including nanomedicine and food safety. The present study investigated the antibacterial activity of zinc oxide (ZnO) when tested against the Gram‐negative bacteria Escherichia coli as well as the Gram‐positive bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, and the effect was more pronounced with the Gram‐positive than with the Gram‐negative bacteria. ZnO NPs also exhibited a preferential ability to suppress growth of E. coli and S. aureus in milk. This study suggested that the application of ZnO NPs as antibacterial agents in food systems and medicine may be effective at inhibiting certain pathogens.     

食品中单核细胞增生李斯特氏菌的风险评估

微生物风险评估主要评估食品中的微生物性病原可能对人群引起的潜在危害,以指导风险管理者制定相应的管理措施。单核细胞增生李斯特氏菌是一种重要的食源性致病菌,由于该菌引发的疾病致死率较高,且其暴发常出现于工业加工食品中而引起了世界范围内的广泛关注。JEMRA及美国FDA/FSIS分别对即食食品中单核细胞增生李斯特氏菌进行了定量评估并发布了完整的评估报告。各国也有对本国特定食品中单核细胞增生李斯特氏菌进行评估的文献报道。但在数据不足的情况下,也可通过定性/半定量的风险分级工具对不同来源的风险进行分级,并确定优先性。由于各国人群消费模式、消费量的不同,以及食品制作和处理方法上的差异会对暴露评估的结果产生影响,从而影响每份食品风险的大小,因此,各国有必要根据本国的情况对特定食品中的单核细胞增生李斯特氏菌进行相应的评估。     

Suitability of Rapid Detection Methods for Salmonella in Poultry Slaughterhouses

In the perspective of an announced prohibition to bring Salmonella-contaminated fresh poultry meat on the retail market as of December 2010, requirements are postulated for rapid methods for detection of Salmonella in poultry meat. These rapid methods should deliver reliable results in time to make it possible to steer the finished products in poultry slaughterhouses into the direction of the fresh poultry market or into the direction of industrial treatment. The most important requirements are the detection limit (1 cfu/25 g), the time of analysis (within hours up to a maximum of 24 h), the sensitivity and specificity, and the validation of the rapid detection method. To determine a requirement for the number of samples to be analyzed per unit of time of the detection methods, a sampling plan for pooling of samples is suggested. Information of commercially available detection methods from literature and data provided by the suppliers was compared to the postulated requirements. The results showed that none of the commercially available detection methods meet all the suggested requirements. For all available methods, the time of analysis is too long to steer the production process in time. This implicates that faster methods should be developed before the announced prohibition can be sensibly introduced. Also, information about sensitivity and specificity, which is essential for the reliability of the rapid test method, should be examined in a more uniform way.     

Sludge accumulation, characteristics, and pathogen inactivation in four primary waste stabilization ponds in central Mexico

To support the development of safe and feasible sludge management strategies, the accumulation rates of sludge and its characteristics were studied in four primary wastewater stabilization ponds (WSPs) in central Mexico (three facultative and one anaerobic). The accumulation rates and distribution of sludge were determined by measuring the thickness of the sludge layer at 8-40 locations throughout each pond. The average, per capita sludge accumulation rates ranged from 0.021 to 0.036m(3)/person/yr. In the anaerobic pond the sludge distribution was uniform throughout the pond, whereas in the three facultative ponds most of the sludge accumulated directly in front of the inlet. To measure the horizontal and vertical variation in the sludge characteristics, sludge cores were collected from 3 to 7 locations in three of the ponds. Each core was divided into 4 sub-samples in which various physical, chemical, and microbiological parameters were measured. In addition, the inactivation of several pathogen indicator organisms was studied in a batch of sludge for 7 months. Based on the microbiological results, it is concluded that reasonable estimates of the inactivation of fecal coliform bacteria, fecal enterococci, F+ coliphage, somatic coliphage, and Ascaris eggs in WSP sludge in central Mexico can be made using first-order rate constants of 0.1, 0.1, 0.01, 0.001, and 0.001d(-1), respectively. From the observed changes in the concentrations of total solids and the volatile to fixed solids ratio, empirical equations were developed to describe anaerobic degradation and compression, which are the two most important processes affecting the volume of sludge after its deposition.     

GAC adsorption filters as barriers for viruses, bacteria and protozoan (oo)cysts in water treatment

Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) adsorption filtration is commonly used in drinking water treatment to remove NOM and micro-pollutants and on base of the process conditions a certain capacity to eliminate pathogenic micro-organisms was expected. The experiences with the mandatory quantitative microbial risk assessment of Dutch drinking water revealed a lack of knowledge on the elimination capacity of this process for pathogens. The objective of the current study was to determine the capacity of GAC filtration to remove MS2, Escherichia coli and spores of Clostridium bifermentans as process indicators for pathogens and more directly of (oo)cysts of Cryptosporidium parvum and Giardia lamblia. Challenge tests with fresh and loaded GAC were performed in pilot plant GAC filters supplied with pre-treated surface water at a contact time which was half of the contact time of the full-scale GAC filters. MS2 phages were not removed and the removal of E. coli and the anaerobic spores was limited ranging from ≤0.1-1.1 log. The (oo)cysts of C. parvum and G. lamblia, however, were removed significantly (1.3-2.7 log). On base of the results of the experiments and the filtration conditions the removal of the indicator bacteria and (oo)cysts was largely attributed to attachment. The model of the Colloid Filtration Theory was used to describe the removal of the dosed biocolloids in the GAC filters, but the results demonstrated that there is a lack of quantitative knowledge about the influence of collector characteristics on the two major CFT parameters, the single collector and the sticking efficiency.