Impact of Foodborne Disease in Taiwan during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background and Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic originated in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, the first case diagnosed since January 2020 in Taiwan. The study about the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on event, location, food source, and pathogens of foodborne disease (FBD) is limited in Taiwan. Our aim in this study is to investigate FBD in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and Methods: We collected publicly available annual summary data from the FBD dataset in the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration and Certifiable Disease on reported FBD in Taiwan from 2019 to 2020. We used logistic regression to evaluate changes in the occurrence or likelihood of FBD cases and Poisson regression to examine the relative risk (RR) between FBD and climate factors. Results: Similar events occurred in 2019 and 2020, but the total number of FBD cases decreased from 6935 in 2019 to 4920 in 2020. The places where FBD decreased were in schools, hospitals, outdoors, vendors, and exteriors. The top place in FBD shifted from schools to restaurants. The top food source for FBD has changed from boxed food to compound food. Bacillus cereus and Salmonella emerged as the top two observed bacterial pathogens causing FBD. The risk of FBD cases increased with a higher air temperature, with an RR of 1.055 (1.05-1.061, p < 0.001) every 1 °C. Conclusion: The incidence of FBD decreased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic in Taiwan. This decline may be attributed to protective measures implemented to control the spread of the virus. This shift in locations could be influenced by changes in public behavior, regulations, or other external factors. The study emphasizes the importance of understanding the sources and effectiveness of severe infection prevention policies. The government can use these findings to formulate evidence-based policies aimed at reducing FBD cases and promoting public health. Consumers can reduce the risk of FBD by following safe food handling and preparation recommendations.

Rapid and sensitive detection of Salmonella in agro-Food and environmental samples: A review of advances in rapid tests and biosensors.

Salmonella is as an intracellular bacterium, causing many human fatalities when the host-specific serotypes reach the host gastrointestinal tract. Nontyphoidal Salmonella are responsible for numerous foodborne outbreaks and product recalls worldwide whereas typhoidal Salmonella are responsible for Typhoid fever cases in developing countries. Yet, Salmonella-related foodborne disease outbreaks through its food and water contaminations have urged the advancement of rapid and sensitive Salmonella-detecting methods for public health protection. While conventional detection methods are time-consuming and ineffective for monitoring foodstuffs with short shelf lives, advances in microbiology, molecular biology and biosensor methods have hastened the detection. Here, the review discusses Salmonella pathogenic mechanisms and its detection technology advancements (fundamental concepts, features, implementations, efficiency, benefits, limitations and prospects). The time-efficiency of each rapid test method is discussed in relation to their limit of detections (LODs) and time required from sample enrichment to final data analysis. Importantly, the matrix effects (LODs and sample enrichments) were compared within the methods to potentially speculate Salmonella detection from environmental, clinical or food matrices using certain techniques. Although biotechnological advancements have led to various time-efficient Salmonella-detecting techniques, one should consider the usage of sophisticated equipment to run the analysis by moderately to highly trained personnel. Ultimately, a fast, accurate Salmonella screening that is readily executed by untrained personnels from various matrices, is desired for public health procurement.

Microbiological hazards in infant and toddler food in China: A comprehensive study between 2004 and 2022.

Infant and toddler food (ITF), including powdered infant and follow-up formula (PIFF) and complementary food (CF), provides the majority of early-life nutrients for young children. As infants and toddlers are more vulnerable to foodborne diseases, the safety concern of ITF is the ultimate priority. However, nationwide surveillance for the presence of hazards, specifically microbiological hazards, in the Chinese ITF is partially known, posing a significant knowledge gap for risk ranking. Most importantly, the related regional surveys were largely published in Chinese, making the data unavailable for global sharing. To bridge these gaps, we screened 5,306 publications and conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis for microbiological hazards using 129 qualified studies. The four most reported microbiological hazards in ITF were Bacillus cereus (13.4 %), Cronobacter (4.8 %), Staphylococcus aureus (1.3 %), and Salmonella (1.1 %). B. cereus is a risk factor in ITF, specifically in PIFF, cereals, and ready-to-eat food. The prevalence of B. cereus was high in Northern and Southern China, while the prevalence of Cronobacter was high in Central China. Cronobacter is a microbiological hazard, specifically in PIFF, with a prevalence of 3.0 %. Interestingly, the prevalence dynamics of Cronobacter and B. cereus in ITF were rising and stable, respectively, whereas the prevalence of S. aureus and Salmonella decreased over time. Together, our analysis will promote the global sharing of these critical findings and may guide future policy making.

Enterococcus contamination of infant foods and implications for exposure to foodborne pathogens in peri-urban neighbourhoods of Kisumu, Kenya.

We collected infant food samples from 714 households in Kisumu, Kenya, and estimated the prevalence and concentration of Enterococcus, an indicator of food hygiene conditions. In a subset of 212 households, we quantified the change in concentration in stored food between a morning and afternoon feeding time. In addition, household socioeconomic characteristics and hygiene practices of the caregivers were documented. The prevalence of Enterococcus in infant foods was 50% (95% confidence interval: 46.1 - 53.4), and the mean log10 colony-forming units (CFUs) was 1.1 (SD + 1.4). No risk factors were significantly associated with the prevalence and concentration of Enterococcus in infant foods. The mean log10 CFU of Enterococcus concentration was 0.47 in the morning and 0.73 in the afternoon foods with a 0.64 log10 mean increase in matched samples during storage. Although no factors were statistically associated with the prevalence and the concentration of Enterococcus in infant foods, household flooring type was significantly associated with an increase in concentration during storage, with finished floors leading to 1.5 times higher odds of concentration increase compared to unfinished floors. Our study revealed high prevalence but low concentration of Enterococcus in infant food in low-income Kisumu households, although concentrations increased during storage implying potential increases in risk of exposure to foodborne pathogens over a day. Further studies aiming at investigating contamination of infant foods with pathogenic organisms and identifying effective mitigation measures are required to ensure infant food safety.

Serotype Distribution, Antimicrobial Resistance, Virulence Genes, and Genetic Diversity of Salmonella spp. Isolated from small-scale Leafy Green Vegetable Supply Chains in South Africa.

Salmonella have been implicated in foodborne disease outbreaks globally and is a pressing concern in the South African small-scale sector due to inadequate hygiene standards and limited regulatory oversight, leading to a higher risk of foodborne diseases. By investigating irrigation water and leafy green vegetables produced by small-scale growers and sold through unregulated supply chains, this study was able to determine the presence, serotype distribution, virulence gene profiles, antibiotic resistance, and genetic diversity of Salmonella isolated from these sources. From 426 samples, 21 Salmonella-positive samples were identified, providing 53 Salmonella isolates. Of these, six different Salmonella serotypes and sequence types (STs) were identified, including Salmonella II 42:r: ST1208 (33.96%; n = 18), Salmonella Enteritidis: ST11 (22.64%; n = 12), Salmonella II 42:z29: ST4395 (16.98%; n = 9), Salmonella Havana: ST1524 (15.09%; n = 8), Salmonella Typhimurium: ST19 (9.43%; n = 5), and Salmonella IIIb 47:i:z: ST7890 (1.89%; n = 1). A total of 92.45% of the isolates were found to be multidrug-resistant, showing high rates of resistance to aztreonam (88.68%; n = 47), ceftazidime (86.79%; n = 46), nalidixic acid (77.36%; n = 41), cefotaxime (75.47%; n = 40), cefepime (71.70%; n = 38), and streptomycin (69.81%; n = 37). All isolates possessed the aac(6')-Iaa antimicrobial resistance gene, with a range of between 9 and 256 virulence genes. Eleven cluster patterns were observed from Enterobacterial Repetitive Intergenic Consensus sequence analyses, demonstrating high diversity among the Salmonella spp., with water and fresh produce isolates clustering, suggesting water as a potential contamination source. Plasmid replicon types were identified in 41.51% (n = 22) of the isolates, including Col(pHAD28) in Salmonella Havana (5.66%; n = 3), Col156 in Salmonella II 42:z29:- (1.89%; n = 1) and both IncFIB(S) and IncFII(S) in Salmonella Enteritidis (22.64; n = 12), Salmonella Typhimurium (9.43%; n = 5), and Salmonella Havana (1.89%; n = 1). This study highlights the presence of multidrug-resistant and multivirulent Salmonella spp. in the small-scale leafy green vegetable supply chains, underscoring the need for the development of a "fit-for-purpose" food safety management system within this system.

A Prediction Tool to Identify the Causative Agent of Enteric Disease Outbreaks Using Outbreak Surveillance Data.

Information on the causative agent in an enteric disease outbreak can be used to generate hypotheses about the route of transmission and possible vehicles, to guide environmental assessments, and to target outbreak control measures. However, only about 40% of outbreaks reported in the United States include a confirmed etiology. The goal of this project was to identify clinical and demographic characteristics that can be used to predict the causative agent in an enteric disease outbreak and to use these data to develop an online tool for investigators to use during an outbreak when hypothesizing about the causative agent. Using data on enteric disease outbreaks from all transmission routes (animal contact, environmental contamination, foodborne, person-to-person, waterborne, unknown) reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we developed random forest models to predict the etiology of an outbreak based on aggregated clinical and demographic characteristics at both the etiology category (i.e., bacteria, parasites, toxins, viruses) and individual etiology (Clostridium perfringens, Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, norovirus, Salmonella, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli, and Shigella) levels. The etiology category model had a kappa of 0.85 and an accuracy of 0.92, whereas the etiology-specific model had a kappa of 0.75 and an accuracy of 0.86. The highest sensitivities in the etiology category model were for bacteria and viruses; all categories had high specificities (>0.90). For the etiology-specific model, norovirus and Salmonella had the highest sensitivity and all etiologies had high specificities. When laboratory confirmation is unavailable, information on the clinical signs and symptoms reported by people associated with the outbreak, with other characteristics including case demographics and illness severity, can be used to predict the etiology or etiology category. An online publicly available tool was developed to assist investigators in their enteric disease outbreak investigations.

Types A and F Clostridium perfringens in healthcare wastewater from Ghana.

IMPORTANCE: Clostridium perfringens causes gas gangrene and food poisoning in humans, and monitoring this bacterium is important for public health. Although whole-genome sequencing is useful to comprehensively understand the virulence, resistome, and global genetic relatedness of bacteria, limited genomic data from environmental sources and developing countries hamper our understanding of the richness of the intrinsic genomic diversity of this pathogen. Here, we successfully accumulated the genetic data on C. perfringens strains isolated from hospital effluent and provided the first evidence that predicted pathogenic C. perfringens may be disseminated in the clinical environment in Ghana. Our findings suggest the importance of risk assessment in the environment as well as the clinical setting to mitigate the potential outbreak of C. perfringens food poisoning in Ghana.

A foodborne outbreak linked to Bacillus cereus at two middle schools in a rural area of Chongqing, China, 2021.

Bacillus cereus (B. cereus) is a common cause of foodborne illness. An outbreak of acute gastrointestinal illness occurred at two middle schools in a rural region of Chongqing, China, in 2021. This study aimed to elucidate the outbreak's characteristics, identify risk factors, and determine the source of contamination. A retrospective cohort study and an environmental investigation were conducted. Vomit samples, anal swabs, and food samples were collected and tested by RT-PCR for 18 species of bacteria and viruses, including B. cereus. Positive samples of B. cereus underwent biochemical experiments and bacterial quantification. A total of 198 cases were reported in this outbreak, with an attack rate of 24.63%. The main symptoms were vomiting (100%), bellyache (83.33%), and dizziness (62.63%). The retrospective cohort study showed a significant association between the outbreak and rice noodles provided by a nearby food manufacturer (RR = 39.63, p < 0.001). B. cereus was detected in 20 vomit samples, three anal swabs, and seven rice noodles samples, with a count exceeding 103 CFU/g. These findings strongly suggested that the outbreak was linked to B. cereus-contaminated rice noodles. Enhancing food safety surveillance and promoting health measures among schools and food manufacturers in rural areas is crucial to prevent similar incidents in the future in Chongqing, China.

Isolation, antimicrobial resistance and virulence characterization of Salmonella spp. from fresh foods in retail markets in Hangzhou, China.

Salmonella can cause severe foodborne diseases. This study investigated the prevalence of Salmonella spp. in fresh foods in Hangzhou market and their harborage of antibiotic resistance and virulence genes, antibiotic susceptibility, and pathogenicity. A total of 500 samples (pork, n = 140; chicken, n = 128; vegetable, n = 232) were collected over a one-year period. Salmonella was found in 4.2% (21) of samples with the detection rate in pork, chicken and vegetables as 4.3% (6), 6.3% (8), and 3% (7), respectively. One Salmonella strain was recovered from each positive sample. The isolates were identified as six serotypes, of which S. Enteritidis (n = 7) and S. Typhimurium (n = 6) were the most predominant serotypes. The majority of isolates showed resistance to tetracycline (85.7%) and/or ciprofloxacin (71.4%). Tetracycline resistance genes showed the highest prevalence (90.5%). The occurrence of resistance genes for ß-lactams (blaTEM-1, 66.7%; and blaSHV, 9.5%) and aminoglycosides (aadA1, 47.6%; Aac(3)-Ia, 19%) was higher than sulfonamides (sul1, 42.9%) and quinolones (parC, 38.1%). The virulence gene fimA was detected in 57.1% of isolates. Gene co-occurrence analysis implied that resistance genes were associated with virulence genes. Furthermore, selected S. Typhimurium isolates (n = 4) carrying different resistance and virulence genes up-regulated the secretions of cytokines IL-6 and IL-8 by Caco-2 cells in different degrees, suggesting that virulence genes may play a role in inflammatory transcription. In in vivo virulence test, microbiological counts in mouse feces and tissues showed that all included S. Typhimurium were able to infect mice, with one strain showing significantly higher virulence than others. In conclusion, this study indicates Salmonella contamination in fresh foods in Hangzhou market poses a risk to public health and it should be closely monitored to prevent and control foodborne diseases.

Sustainable Applications of Nanopropolis to Combat Foodborne Illnesses.

Propolis has numerous biological properties and technological potential, but its low solubility in water makes its use quite difficult. With the advent of nanotechnology, better formulations with propolis, such as nanopropolis, can be achieved to improve its properties. Nanopropolis is a natural nanomaterial with several applications, including in the maintenance of food quality. Food safety is a global public health concern since food matrices are highly susceptible to contamination of various natures, leading to food loss and transmission of harmful foodborne illness. Due to their smaller size, propolis nanoparticles are more readily absorbed by the body and have higher antibacterial and antifungal activities than common propolis. This review aims to understand whether using propolis with nanotechnology can help preserve food and prevent foodborne illness. Nanotechnology applied to propolis formulations proved to be effective against pathogenic microorganisms of industrial interest, making it possible to solve problems of outbreaks that can occur through food.

Cold plasma application to fresh green leafy vegetables: Impact on microbiology and product quality.

Fresh green leafy vegetables (FGLVs) are consumed either garden-fresh or by going through very few simple processing steps. For this reason, foodborne diseases that come with the consumption of fresh products in many countries have prioritized the development of new and reliable technologies to reduce food-related epidemics. Cold plasma (CP) is considered one of the sustainable and green processing approaches that inactivate target microorganisms without causing a significant temperature increase during processing. This review presents an overview of recent developments regarding the commercialization potential of CP-treated FGLVs, focusing on specific areas such as microbial inactivation and the influence of CP on product quality. The effect of CP differs according to the power of the plasma, frequency, gas flow rate, application time, ionizing gases composition, the distance between the electrodes and pressure, as well as the characteristics of the product. As well as microbial decontamination, CP offers significant potential for increasing the shelf life of perishable and short-shelf-life products. In addition, organizations actively involved in CP research and development and patent applications (2016-2022) have also been analyzed.

Fiber-Optic-Based Biosensor as an Innovative Technology for Point-of-Care Testing Detection of Foodborne Pathogenic Bacteria To Defend Food and Agricultural Product Safety.

Food safety is a concerning issue globally. Foodborne-pathogenic-bacteria-derived foodborne disease outbreaks have increased the threat to human health. The accurate and rapid detection of foodborne bacteria is of great significance for food safety. A fiber-optic-based biosensor has emerged as a powerful technique for the point-of-care testing of foodborne bacteria in food and agricultural products. This Perspective discusses the opportunities and challenges of fiber-optic-based biosensors for foodborne bacteria detection. The corresponding solution strategies to promote the application of this innovative technology in food and agricultural product detection for food safety and human health are also discussed and proposed.

Etiological Survey and Traceability Analysis of a Foodborne Disease Outbreak of Salmonella Senftenberg in Guizhou Province.

To conduct a study that examined the molecular epidemiology and pathogenesis of Salmonella Senftenberg isolates associated with an outbreak of foodborne disease in Guizhou Province and to provide a reference basis for the traceability of foodborne salmonellosis outbreaks and clinical diagnosis and treatment in the province. Fourteen strains of suspected Salmonella isolated from patient stool and food samples were used for pathogenic identification and serotyping by biochemical and mass spectrometry methods. Fourteen types of antibiotics were tested for drug sensitivity by the microbroth dilution method, and molecular typing was performed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and whole genome sequencing (WGS). After the sequencing data were spliced by SPAdes, the gene protein sequences were compared with the Comprehensive Antibiotic Research Database and Virulence Factor Database, drug resistance and virulence genes were predicted, and whole genome multilocus sequence typing (wgMLST) was performed. The results were compared with those for Salmonella strains of the same serotype from the past 5 years in China detailed on the TraNet website. All 14 strains were identified as Salmonella Senftenberg (with the antigenic formula 1,3,19:g,s,t:-), and in the PFGE cluster tree, the strains were divided into two band types, with a similarity of 88.9%. The 14 strains were sensitive to the 14 antibiotics. WGS analysis showed that the 14 strains carried the same drug resistance and virulence genes and that all strains carried 3 aminoglycoside and lipopeptide drug resistance genes, including 114 virulence genes. The wgMLST results showed that the strains were distributed on the same small branch as those obtained from previous outbreaks of infection in Tianjin and Jilin. Salmonella Senftenberg, which caused the outbreak, carries a variety of virulence genes, which suggests that the strain is highly pathogenic. These pathogenic bacteria may be associated with the Salmonella strain in Tianjin, Jilin, and other places and have caused foodborne disease outbreaks as a result of imported contamination.

Bacteria and poisonous plants/fungi were the primary causative hazards of foodborne disease outbreaks: A five-year survey from Guangzhou, Guangdong.

The burden of foodborne diseases is of serious concern. More effective and localized intervention policies for outbreak prevention and management are required; however, policy modification is hampered due to a lack of information on the epidemiological characteristics of outbreaks in Guangzhou. We collected data from 182 foodborne disease outbreaks reported in Guangzhou, China from 2017 to 2021 to investigate the epidemiological characteristics and associated factors. Nine outbreaks were serious enough to be labelled as level IV public health emergencies, all of which were associated with canteens. In terms of the number of outbreaks, morbidity and clinical medical needs, bacteria and poisonous plants/fungi were the primary causative hazards of outbreaks, and were found mostly in foodservice establishments (96 %, 95/99) and private homes (86 %, 37/43) respectively. Surprisingly, Vibrio parahaemolyticus was primarily identified in meat and poultry products rather than in aquatic products in these outbreaks. Patient specimens and food samples were among the most common sources of detected pathogens in foodservice establishments and private homes. Cross-contamination (35 %), improper processing (32 %) and equipment/utensil contamination (30 %) were the top three risk factors for outbreaks related to foodservice establishments, while accidental ingestion of poisonous food (78 %) was the most common risk factor in private homes. Based on the above epidemiological characteristics of the outbreaks, key foodborne disease intervention policy points should be to raise public awareness of harmful food and avoid risk behaviour, improve handler hygiene training, and strengthen the hygiene management and supervision of kitchens, especially canteens in collective units.

Bacteriophage Delivery Systems for Food Applications: Opportunities and Perspectives.

Currently, one-third of all food produced worldwide is wasted or lost, and bacterial contamination is one of the main reasons. Moreover, foodborne diseases are a severe problem, causing more than 420,000 deaths and nearly 600 million illnesses yearly, demanding more attention to food safety. Thus, new solutions need to be explored to tackle these problems. A possible solution for bacterial contamination is using bacteriophages (phages), which are harmless to humans; these natural viruses can be used to prevent or reduce food contamination by foodborne pathogens. In this regard, several studies showed the effectiveness of phages against bacteria. However, when used in their free form, phages can lose infectivity, decreasing the application in foods. To overcome this problem, new delivery systems are being studied to incorporate phages and ensure prolonged activity and controlled release in food systems. This review focuses on the existent and new phage delivery systems applied in the food industry to promote food safety. Initially, an overview of phages, their main advantages, and challenges is presented, followed by the different delivery systems, focused in methodologies, and biomaterials that can be used. In the end, examples of phage applications in foods are disclosed and future perspectives are approached.

Escherichia coli O157:H7 strains in bovine carcasses and the impact on the animal production chain.

Foodborne diseases are characterized by conditions that can induce symptomatic illnesses in their carriers, and therefore represent a serious problem. They are important conditions from a clinical and epidemiological point of view, and are associated with the occurrence of serious public health problems, with a strong impact on morbidity and mortality. The Escherichia coli (E. coli) is an enterobacterium associated with enteric conditions of variable intensity and which are accompanied by blood. The transmission routes are mainly based on the consumption of contaminated food and water sources. Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) are considered a serogroup of E. coli, are capable of producing Shiga-type toxins (Stx 1 and Stx 2) and the O157:H7 strain is one of the best-known serotypes. The early detection of this pathogen is very important, especially due to the capacity of contamination of carcasses destined for food consumption and supply of productive markets. Sanitary protocols must be developed and constantly reviewed in order to prevent/control the presence of the pathogen.

Lateral Flow Strip Biosensors for Foodborne Pathogenic Bacteria via Direct and Indirect Sensing Strategies: A Review.

Rapid and sensitive detection of foodborne pathogenic bacteria is particularly important for the prevention and control of foodborne diseases. The lateral flow strip biosensor (LFSB) is one of the most promising point-of-care detection tools and has been widely used in food safety monitoring. This review introduces recent advances in the detection of foodborne pathogenic bacteria using LFSBs. According to different bacterial biomarkers, we summarize the direct and indirect sensing strategies of bacterial LFSBs. The direct sensing strategies for whole bacterial cells are divided into antibodies, antibody alternatives, and label-free according to the recognition elements. The indirect sensing strategies refer to the detection of bacterial nucleic acids and metabolites. Next, we compare and discuss the applications of direct and indirect sensing strategies. Finally, the existing challenges, future perspectives, and development directions are discussed, which will facilitate the theoretical innovation and practical application for bacterial LFSBs.

Effects of Environmental and Water Quality Variables on Histamine-Producing Bacteria Concentration and Species in the Northern Gulf of Mexico.

Scombrotoxin (histamine) fish poisoning is a common seafood-borne illness attributed to toxin production by histamine-producing bacteria (HPB) in fish tissues during decomposition. In laboratory studies, growth of HPB and other bacterial species is affected by physical and chemical attributes, but natural communities of HPB are not well understood. To determine how in situ environmental and water quality variables may affect density of HPB in the natural aquatic environment, we compared presence and abundance of HPB to ambient temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, fecal coliforms, male-specific coliphage, nutrient concentrations, carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios, and C:N in water samples collected from July 2017 to February 2018 along a natural salinity gradient in a tidal river on the coast of northern Gulf of Mexico. HPB in water samples were quantified using a real-time PCR, most probable number method. HPB species were identified via 16S rRNA gene sequences. Temperature and salinity were determined to be the main factors driving HPB presence and concentration. Canonical correspondence analysis revealed that different HPB were associated with different environmental conditions. Photobacterium damselae was found under warmer, higher-salinity conditions; Raoultella planticola was found at colder, lower-salinity conditions; Enterobacter aerogenes was found at warmer, lower-salinity conditions; and Morganella morganii was found at most sites, independent of environmental conditions. These results showed that naturally occurring HPB abundance and species composition can be affected by environmental conditions, which could manifest in various potentials for histamine formation and scombrotoxin fish poisoning risk based on environmental factors. IMPORTANCE This study determined the effects of environmental conditions on presence and abundance of naturally occurring histamine-producing bacteria in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Here, we show that HPB abundance and species composition are related to in situ ambient temperature and salinity, with the magnitude of this effect dependent on the particular HPB species. This finding suggests that environmental conditions at fishing sites could affect the risk of human illness from scombrotoxin (histamine) fish poisoning.

Food safety incidents in the red meat industry: A review of foodborne disease outbreaks linked to the consumption of red meat and its products, 1991 to 2021.

Red meat is a significant source of human nutrition, and the red meat industry contributes to the economy of nations. Nonetheless, there is a widespread global concern about public health issues posed by severe food safety incidents within the red meat industry. Most of these incidents are associated with foodborne disease outbreaks that impact individual consumers, food businesses and society. This study adopts a systematic search and review approach to identify three decades of published investigation reports of global foodborne disease outbreaks linked with the consumption of red meat and products made from them. The review aims to evaluate the critical features of these outbreak incidents to get insight into their contributing factors and root causes. In particular, this review discusses the transmission setting (origin of pathogenic agents), the food vehicles mostly incriminated, the causative pathogens (bacteria, viruses, and parasites) causing the most illnesses, and the most commonly reported contributing factors to the outbreaks. This information can help researchers and food business operators (FBOs) inform future risk assessment studies and support risk management activities in developing risk-mitigating strategies for the industry. Findings from this study suggest that implementing food safety management strategies which include adequate control measures at all stages of the food chain, from farm to fork, is imperative in preventing outbreak incidents. Of equal importance is the need for enhanced and sustained public education about the risk of foodborne illnesses associated with meat and its products whilst discouraging the consumption of raw meat products, especially by high-risk groups.

Nanomaterial interfaces designed with different biorecognition elements for biosensing of key foodborne pathogens.

Foodborne diseases caused by pathogen bacteria are a serious problem toward the safety of human life in a worldwide. Conventional methods for pathogen bacteria detection have several handicaps, including trained personnel requirement, low sensitivity, laborious enrichment steps, low selectivity, and long-term experiments. There is a need for precise and rapid identification and detection of foodborne pathogens. Biosensors are a remarkable alternative for the detection of foodborne bacteria compared to conventional methods. In recent years, there are different strategies for the designing of specific and sensitive biosensors. Researchers activated to develop enhanced biosensors with different transducer and recognition elements. Thus, the aim of this study was to provide a topical and detailed review on aptamer, nanofiber, and metal organic framework-based biosensors for the detection of food pathogens. First, the conventional methods, type of biosensors, common transducer, and recognition element were systematically explained. Then, novel signal amplification materials and nanomaterials were introduced. Last, current shortcomings were emphasized, and future alternatives were discussed.