Histology as a Valid Tool To Differentiate Fresh from Frozen-Thawed Marinated Fish.

European Commission Regulation (EU) 1276/2011 requires that fishery products intended for raw consumption be frozen at -20°C for not less than 24 h or at -35°C for at least 15 h in order to kill viable parasites other than trematodes. But because marinating processes are not always effective in destroying nematode larvae, raw marinated fish preparations should be frozen before consumption. This study evaluated the performance of a standardized histological method to distinguish between fresh and frozen-thawed raw marinated fish. Sixty anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) fillets were sampled: 30 were marinated at +4°C for 24 h, and 30 were frozen at -20°C for 24 h before being marinated for 24 h. All 60 samples were fixed in formalin, processed for paraffin embedding, cut, and stained with hematoxylin and eosin. The slide preparations were examined microscopically by three independent histopathologists and classified as frozen-thawed or negative according to standard operating procedure criteria in use at our laboratory. Performance evaluation of the method showed 100% sensitivity (95% confidence interval [CI], 88.4 to 100%) and 100% specificity (95% CI, 88.4 to 100%), and the interrater agreement (Cohen's kappa) was 1 (95% CI, 0.85 to 1). Histology proved a valid and reliable tool to distinguish fresh from frozen-thawed marinated fish. It can be applied to deliver safe raw fishery products to consumers in order to minimize the risk of anisakidosis

Investigating a Prognostic Factor for Canine Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Analysis of Different Histological Grading Systems and the Role of PIVKA-II

SIMPLE SUMMARY: PIVKA-II is an aberrant form of vitamin K that is increased in human coagulation disfunctions and in some neoplastic diseases. In veterinary medicine, PIVKA-II concentrations can be useful to identify patients with coagulative disorders in plasma and tissues, but its role as marker for hepatocellular carcinoma has not been investigated previously. In this study we characterized ed the expression of PIVKA-II in canine hepatocellular carcinomas in relation with the prognosis and some histological grading systems with the aim of finding useful prognostic factors for this canine tumour. ABSTRACT: Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in dogs is uncommon and often associated with a good prognosis, although some cases prove to be aggressive. In human oncology HCC is often very aggressive and diagnostic methods and prognostic factors are widely used to predict its biological behaviour. These include the expression of PIVKA-II. Methods: in order to identify a prognostic factor for canine HCC, we applied different methods of histological grading and investigated PIVKA-II expression in 22 HCC of dogs treated surgically and followed clinically for at least 2 years. Results: Nineteen patients analysed have passed the observation period without tumour recurrence, while 3 died following the development of metastases. PIVKA-II was positive in 15/22 cases without correlation with prognosis or tumoural grading even if a trend of PIVKA-II negativity in low WHO grades as well as increased number of PIVKA-II positive cases in higher WHO grades weres observed. Conclusions: This work showed that, PIVKA-II cannot be considered either as a marker of malignancy or as a prognostic marker for canine HCC. The poor prognosis depends usually on the clinical presentation. Thus prognostic parameters in canine HCC able to predict its aggressive behaviour through histological examination are still missing. The most promising method, limited to our study, seems to be the WHO histological grading

Differentiation between Fresh and Thawed Cephalopods Using NIR Spectroscopy and Multivariate Data Analysis

The sale of frozen–thawed fish and fish products, labeled as fresh, is currently one of the most common and insidious commercial food frauds. For this reason, the demand of reliable tools to identify the storage conditions is increasing. The present study was performed on two species, commonly sold in large-scale distribution: Cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) and musky octopus (Eledone spp.). Fifty fresh cephalopod specimens were analyzed at refrigeration temperature (2 ± 2°C), then frozen at −20°C for 10 days and finally thawed and analyzed again. The performance of three near-infrared (NIR) instruments in identifying storage conditions were compared: The benchtop NIR Multi Purpose Analyzer (MPA) by Bruker, the portable MicroNIR by VIAVI and the handheld NIR SCiO by Consumer Physics. All collected spectra were processed and analyzed with chemometric methods. The SCiO data were also analyzed using the analytical tools available in the online application provided by the manufacturer to evaluate its performance. NIR spectroscopy, coupled with chemometrics, allowed discriminating between fresh and thawed samples with high accuracy: Cuttlefish between 82.3–94.1%, musky octopus between 91.2–97.1%, global model between 86.8–95.6%. Results show how food frauds could be detected directly in the marketplace, through small, ultra-fast and simplified handheld devices, whereas official control laboratories could use benchtop analytical instruments, coupled with chemometric approaches, to develop accurate and validated methods, suitable for regulatory purposes

Chemometric Differentiation of Sole and Plaice Fish Fillets Using Three Near-Infrared Instruments

Fish species substitution is one of the most common forms of fraud all over the world, as fish identification can be very challenging for both consumers and experienced inspectors in the case of fish sold as fillets. The difficulties in distinguishing among different species may generate a “grey area” in which mislabelling can occur. Thus, the development of fast and reliable tools able to detect such frauds in the field is of crucial importance. In this study, we focused on the distinction between two flatfish species largely available on the market, namely the Guinean sole (Synaptura cadenati) and European plaice (Pleuronectes platessa), which are very similar looking. Fifty fillets of each species were analysed using three near-infrared (NIR) instruments: the handheld SCiO (Consumer Physics), the portable MicroNIR (VIAVI), and the benchtop MPA (Bruker). PLS-DA classification models were built using the spectral datasets, and all three instruments provided very good results, showing high accuracy: 94.1% for the SCiO and MicroNIR portable instruments, and 90.1% for the MPA benchtop spectrometer. The good classification results of the approach combining NIR spectroscopy, and simple chemometric classification methods suggest great applicability directly in the context of real-world marketplaces, as well as in official control plans

A New Approach Against Food Frauds: The Portable Near-Infrared Device for Fish Fillets Identification

The demand for analytical methods for fish product authenticity has increased dramatically, particularly in rapid and non- destructive food authentication. Near-infrared (NIR) handheld devices can meet this need for fast, reliable, non-destructive and in situ analysis. Aim of this study was to verify fish fillets species by using a pocket-sized NIR sensor, called SCiO, a handheld NIR spectrometer that can easily scan solid and liquid samples. The species were chosen from among the most commonly sold on the market as fresh. Samples were divided in two groups, one for calibration and one for validation. The first was performed to set up the instrument and the second to cross-validate model performance. The fish species were correctly identified with a global accuracy between 93.97% and 96.58% and were all confirmed by a validated method based on genetic marker. The samples correspond to the declaration, suggesting this method as a good screening approach to avoid fish frauds with good accuracy

Zoonoses Surveillance in Italy (2000-2009): Investigation on Animals with Neurological Symptoms

Zoonoses are defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as \u201cThose diseases and infections naturally transmitted between vertebrae animals and man\u201d (WHO 1959) (Palmer et al., 1998). They may be caused by viruses, bacteria, including chlamidiae and rickettsiae, fungi, protozoa, helminths and arthropods (Krauss et al., 2003), and transmitted directly (through contact with skin, hair, eggs, blood or secretions) or indirectly (by insect vectors and ingestion of contaminated food). Currently, 1415 pathogens for humans have been identified and of these approximately 61% (868) are agents of zoonoses, some of which manifest with neurological signs; 132 agents are also associated with emerging zoonoses (Asjo et al., 2007; Matassa, 2007; Taylor et al. , 2001). Neurological zoonoses are widespread, especially in the developing countries where they are not even diagnosed in most cases. Emerging zoonoses of recently identified pathogens are Lyme disease, cryptosporidiosis, West Nile disease, transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, and possible variants of the avian influenza virus, which have found new favourable conditions for spreading. In contrast, re-emerging zoonoses are well-known diseases considered as eradicated in a given country but recur with an exponentially increasing incidence, such as tuberculosis, leptospirosis, rabies (Matassa, 2007)