Prevalence of foodborne pathogens in rural pigs and in derived cold pork meats - preliminary report

The rural breeding of one or two pigs and their domestic slaughtering is a significance reality in the Veneto Region, as a consequence of an ancient tradition still surviving in this countryside. In the eastern part of the Venice Province, about 2,500 rural pigs are bred and slaughtered ever year in the period between November and February. Many data are available on mdustnal breeding and processing, whereas very little is known about the prevalence of foodborne pathogens both in live ammals and in denved food, mainly sausage, salami and cold pork meats

Aeromonas no processamento de queijos tipos Minas Frescal e Colonial.

Resumo: Com o objetivo de estabelecer, durante o processamento do queijo Minas Frescal e Colonial os possíveis pontos de contaminação e a forma de disseminação de bactérias do gênero Aeromonas, foram analisados, quanto à presença do micro-organismo, diferentes produtos e pontos do fluxograma de produção. Para o Queijo Minas Frescal, Aeromonas spp. foram isoladas no leite cru, leite pasteurizado, ambiente de produção e nas mãos dos manipuladores. A. caviae foi a espécie mais frequentemente identificada, sendo também isoladas A. sobria e A. schubertii. Durante o processamento do queijo Colonial, as espécies A. hydrophila, A. caviae, A. sobria, A. veronii e A. jandaei foram isoladas a partir da água, mãos dos manipuladores, utensílios, leite cru e após tratamento térmico e de massa coagulada. Os resultados demonstram que o gênero Aeromonas encontra-se disseminado nas diferentes etapas do processamento de queijos, destacando-se o leite cru como principal fonte de contaminação para o processamento industrial e artesanal. [Aeromonas in processing line of Minas Frescal and Colonial cheeses]. Abstract: The aim of this study is to establish possible contamination points and dissemination forms of the bacteria genus Aeromonas during the processing of the Brazilian cheeses Minas Frescal and Colonial. Therefore, different products and production points of the process were analyzed to determine the presence of the microorganism. In Minas Frescal cheese, Aeromonas spp. was isolated in raw and pasteurized milk, in the environment and on the handlers? hands. A. caviae was the most frequently identified species, but A. sobria and A. schubertii were also isolated. During the processing of Colonial cheese, the species A. hydrophila, A. caviae, A. sobria, A. veronii and A. jandaei were isolated in the water, raw milk, after thermal treatment and curd, as well as on the handlers' hands and utensils. The results showed that the genus Aeromonas is disseminated throughout different stages of both cheese processes while the raw milk stands out as the main source of contamination in the industrial and handmade processing

Perfil de resistência de Aeromonas spp. isolada no fluxograma de produção do queijo minas frescal industrial e artesanal.

Resumo: Bactérias do gênero Aeromonas podem ser isoladas de amostras clínicas, alimentares e ambientais. Para os derivados lácteos a contaminação decorre da presença do agente na matéria prima utilizada para produção, ou devido a condições higiênicas insatisfatórias durante o processamento. Considerando a importância da Aeromonas spp. como patógeno emergente de doenças de origem alimentar, o uso indiscriminado de antimicrobianos nas patologias humanas, além do papel fundamental que o leite e seus derivados representam na alimentação humana, o presente estudo teve por objetivo verificar o comportamento dos isolados frente à ação de antimicrobianos de uso comum. Foram pesquisados produtos e pontos do fluxograma do processamento de derivados lácteos, que poderiam veicular o gênero Aeromonas e permitir sua ocorrência nos produtos finais, ou atuar como disseminadores do micro-organismo nas diferentes etapas do processamento do queijo Minas Frescal e do queijo Colonial. Os resultados demonstram altos níveis de resistência: 33,6% dos 98 isolados de Aeromonas spp. foram resistentes a todos os 15 antimicrobianos testados, correspondendo a 7,5% dos isolados do queijo Colonial e 51,7% do queijo Minas Frescal, ocorrendo, portanto, maior resistência entre as amostras coletadas na indústria. 100% dos isolados apresentaram resistência múltipla, resultado que revela um perfil preocupante para saúde pública. [Resistance profile of Aeromonas spp. Isolated in dairy products industry]. Abstract: Bacteria of the genus Aeromonas can be isolated from clinical, food and environmental samples. For dairy products contamination can be caused by the presence of the agent in the feedstock used for production or due to unsatisfactory hygienic conditions during processing. The present study aimed to assess Aeromonas isolates behavior in the presence of common antimicrobials, considering the importance of Aeromonas spp. as an emerging pathogen of foodborne diseases, the indiscriminate use of antimicrobials to treat human pathologies, in addition to the role that milk and its derivatives play in human feeding habits. The processing steps during dairy products manufacturing were studied looking for vulnerable points or products where Aeromonas could be present and, subsequently, either pass it to the final products or disseminate the micro-organism in different processing stages of Minas and Colonial cheeses. The results show high levels of resistance: 33.6% of 98 isolates of Aeromonas spp. were resistant to all 15 antibiotics tested, corresponding to 7.5% of the isolates from Colonial cheese and 51.7% from Minas cheese, thus showing greater resistance among the samples collected in the industry. Multiple antimicrobial resistance was verified in 100% of the isolates, which reveals a profile which is alarming for public health

Identification of control strategies to manage microbiological risks in typical pork products

Starting from 2009 a pilot project has been implemented by a local veterinary service of the Veneto region of Italy (AZ-ULSS 8) in collaboration with IZSVe (Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie) with the aim of identifying control measures based on own-checks and official controls in order to manage microbiological risks related to traditional pork fermented sausages (Italian salami end soppresse) consumption. According to the data obtained a control strategy based on microbiological tests performed by the Competent Authority (CA) and the monitoring of the weight decrease in sausages by the food business operator (FBO) has been implemented for 2010-2011 production season

Evolution of oesophageal adenocarcinoma from metaplastic columnar epithelium without goblet cells in Barrett's oesophagus

Supported by the Dutch Cancer Society (KWF) and Cancer Research UK (CR-UK). This work was supported by Cancer Research UK (grant number A14895

Quantification of crypt and stem cell evolution in the normal and neoplastic human colon.

Human intestinal stem cell and crypt dynamics remain poorly characterized because transgenic lineage-tracing methods are impractical in humans. Here, we have circumvented this problem by quantitatively using somatic mtDNA mutations to trace clonal lineages. By analyzing clonal imprints on the walls of colonic crypts, we show that human intestinal stem cells conform to one-dimensional neutral drift dynamics with a "functional" stem cell number of five to six in both normal patients and individuals with familial adenomatous polyposis (germline APC(-/+)). Furthermore, we show that, in adenomatous crypts (APC(-/-)), there is a proportionate increase in both functional stem cell number and the loss/replacement rate. Finally, by analyzing fields of mtDNA mutant crypts, we show that a normal colon crypt divides around once every 30-40 years, and the division rate is increased in adenomas by at least an order of magnitude. These data provide in vivo quantification of human intestinal stem cell and crypt dynamics.This study was supported by Cancer Research UK (to A.-M.B. and N.A.W.), the Medical Research Council (to B.C. and S.A.C.M.), the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (to A.G.F.), Microsoft Research (to A.G.F.), the National Institute for Health Research University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (to M.R.J.), the Dutch Cancer Research Foundation (to M.J.), the Wellcome Trust (to B.D.S.), and Higher Education Funding Council for England (to T.A.G.)

Resistance of Haemonchus contortus to rafoxanide in sheep

Um teste anti-helmíntico controlado, em ovinos experimentalmente infestados, foi efetuado com a finalidade de verificar o comportamento da rafoxanida em uma estirpe de Haemonchus contortus suspeita de resistência ao medicamento. A estirpe estudada é proveniente de ovinos de uma fazenda do município de Uruguaiana, Rio Grande do Sul. Verificou-se que não houve redução da infestação nos animais que receberam 7,5 mg/kg de rafoxanida e que houve redução, de aproximadamente, 50% da população de parasitas, nos que receberam 15 mg/kg.A controlled anthelmintic test was carried out in experimentally infested sheep to verify the action of rafoxanide on an Haemonchus contortus strain labelled as a resistant one to the drug. This suspected resistant strain was obtained from the sheep breeded in a farm at Uruguaiana country, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The drug produced no reduction when it was used in a dose of 7.5 mg/kg, but it produced a 50 percent reduction when used in a dose of 15 mg/kg

Project for guaranteeing the safety of foods prepared by small local producers

The Veneto Region, through Regional legislation (law DGR 20 16/2007), has authorised the sale of small quantities of processed foods (both animal- and non-animal-based) from small local producers directly to the consumer and has defined the hygienic requirements for the production and sale of these foods. The objective of the present analysis was to test for the presence of pathogens in samples of cured meats from small local producers and in faeces samples from the animals used to produce these foods, so as to determine whether or not the Regional legislation allows the objectives of the European legislation on food safety (Regulation 178/02 and 852/04) to be met

Crypt fusion as a homeostatic mechanism in the human colon.

OBJECTIVE: The crypt population in the human intestine is dynamic: crypts can divide to produce two new daughter crypts through a process termed crypt fission, but whether this is balanced by a second process to remove crypts, as recently shown in mouse models, is uncertain. We examined whether crypt fusion (the process of two neighbouring crypts fusing into a single daughter crypt) occurs in the human colon. DESIGN: We used somatic alterations in the gene cytochrome c oxidase (CCO) as lineage tracing markers to assess the clonality of bifurcating colon crypts (n=309 bifurcating crypts from 13 patients). Mathematical modelling was used to determine whether the existence of crypt fusion can explain the experimental data, and how the process of fusion influences the rate of crypt fission. RESULTS: In 55% (21/38) of bifurcating crypts in which clonality could be assessed, we observed perfect segregation of clonal lineages to the respective crypt arms. Mathematical modelling showed that this frequency of perfect segregation could not be explained by fission alone (p<10-20). With the rates of fission and fusion taken to be approximately equal, we then used the distribution of CCO-deficient patch size to estimate the rate of crypt fission, finding a value of around 0.011 divisions/crypt/year. CONCLUSIONS: We have provided the evidence that human colonic crypts undergo fusion, a potential homeostatic process to regulate total crypt number. The existence of crypt fusion in the human colon adds a new facet to our understanding of the highly dynamic and plastic phenotype of the colonic epithelium.Cancer Research UK (A14895, A-MB and NAW; A19771, TAG)Wellcome Trust (098357, BDS; 209409/Z/17/Z, CB)Medical Research Council (G0901178, BC, NJ and SACM

Hepatocytes undergo punctuated expansion dynamics from a periportal stem cell niche in normal human liver

Background & Aims: While normal human liver is thought to be generally quiescent, clonal hepatocyte expansions have been observed, though neither their cellular source nor their expansion dynamics have been determined. Knowing the hepatocyte cell of origin, and their subsequent dynamics and trajectory within the human liver will provide an important basis to understand disease-associated dysregulation. Methods: Herein, we use in vivo lineage tracing and methylation sequence analysis to demonstrate normal human hepatocyte ancestry. We exploit next-generation mitochondrial sequencing to determine hepatocyte clonal expansion dynamics across spatially distinct areas of laser-captured, microdissected, clones, in tandem with computational modelling in morphologically normal human liver. Results: Hepatocyte clones and rare SOX9+ hepatocyte progenitors commonly associate with portal tracts and we present evidence that clones can lineage-trace with cholangiocytes, indicating the presence of a bipotential common ancestor at this niche. Within clones, we demonstrate methylation CpG sequence diversity patterns indicative of periportal not pericentral ancestral origins, indicating a portal to central vein expansion trajectory. Using spatial analysis of mitochondrial DNA variants by next-generation sequencing coupled with mathematical modelling and Bayesian inference across the portal-central axis, we demonstrate that patterns of mitochondrial DNA variants reveal large numbers of spatially restricted mutations in conjunction with limited numbers of clonal mutations. Conclusions: These datasets support the existence of a periportal progenitor niche and indicate that clonal patches exhibit punctuated but slow growth, then quiesce, likely due to acute environmental stimuli. These findings crucially contribute to our understanding of hepatocyte dynamics in the normal human liver. Impact and implications: The liver is mainly composed of hepatocytes, but we know little regarding the source of these cells or how they multiply over time within the disease-free human liver. In this study, we determine a source of new hepatocytes by combining many different lab-based methods and computational predictions to show that hepatocytes share a common cell of origin with bile ducts. Both our experimental and computational data also demonstrate hepatocyte clones are likely to expand in slow waves across the liver in a specific trajectory, but often lie dormant for many years. These data show for the first time the expansion dynamics of hepatocytes in normal liver and their cell of origin enabling the accurate measurment of changes to their dynamics that may lead to liver disease. These findings are important for researchers determining cancer risk in human liver