Linden flower (Tilia spp.) as potential vehicle of Clostridium botulinum spores in the transmission of infant botulism.
Rev Argent Microbiol
; 41(4): 232-6, 2009.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-20085187
ABSTRACT
Infant botulism is an intestinal toxemia caused principally by Clostridium botulinum. Since the infection occurs in the intestinal tract, numerous food products have been investigated for the presence of C. botulinum and its neurotoxins. In many countries, people use linden flower (Tilia spp) tea as a household remedy and give it to infants as a sedative. Therefore, to help provide a clear picture of this disease transmission, we investigated the presence of botulinum spores in linden flowers. In this study, we analyzed 100 samples of unwrapped linden flowers and 100 samples of linden flowers in tea bags to determine the prevalence and spore-load of C. botulinum. Results were analyzed by the Fisher test. We detected a prevalence of 3% of botulinum spores in the unwrapped linden flowers analyzed and a spore load of 30 spores per 100 grams. None of the industrialized linden flowers analyzed were contaminated with botulinum spores. C. botulinum type A was identified in two samples and type B in one sample. Linden flowers must be considered a potential vehicle of C. botulinum, and the ingestion of linden flower tea can represent a risk factor for infant botulism.
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Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Esporos Bacterianos
/
Bebidas
/
Botulismo
/
Clostridium botulinum
/
Tilia
/
Flores
/
Microbiologia de Alimentos
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Animals
/
Humans
/
Infant
País/Região como assunto:
America do sul
/
Argentina
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Rev Argent Microbiol
Ano de publicação:
2009
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Argentina