Influence of production on the presence of patulin and ochratoxin A in fruit juices and wines of Argentina

In this study, the relative frequency and concentration of patulin (PAT) and ochratoxin A (OTA) in fruit juices and wines collected in Argentina between 2005 and 2013 were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. PAT was detected in 1997 of 5958 samples (ranging from 3.0 to 19,622 μg/L), and 510 samples presented PAT levels above 50 μg/L. The highest incidence of PAT was observed in 2005 (243 of 419 samples) while the lowest was quantified in 2009 (104 of 482 samples). OTA was detected in only 22 of 1401 samples at concentrations ranging from 0.15 to 3.6 μg/L, and the highest incidence was observed in 2007 (8 of 153 samples). The concentration of PAT and OTA in the beverages analyzed was found to be affected by the type of fruit product, fruit commodity and production year. A great amount of data on the incidence of these mycotoxins in these matrixes can be further used in the development and reinforcement of measures to reduce the burden of their presence in juices and wines. This is important since PAT levels above the limit set by regulations were high and fruit juices are quite consumed by children. Although OTA contamination was low, effective ways to safeguard consumer exposure to PAT and OTA and consequently to protect public health are essential and indispensable.Facultad de Ciencias ExactasCentro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimento

Influence of production on the presence of patulin and ochratoxin A in fruit juices and wines of Argentina

In this study, the relative frequency and concentration of patulin (PAT) and ochratoxin A (OTA) in fruit juices and wines collected in Argentina between 2005 and 2013 were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. PAT was detected in 1997 of 5958 samples (ranging from 3.0 to 19,622 μg/L), and 510 samples presented PAT levels above 50 μg/L. The highest incidence of PAT was observed in 2005 (243 of 419 samples) while the lowest was quantified in 2009 (104 of 482 samples). OTA was detected in only 22 of 1401 samples at concentrations ranging from 0.15 to 3.6 μg/L, and the highest incidence was observed in 2007 (8 of 153 samples). The concentration of PAT and OTA in the beverages analyzed was found to be affected by the type of fruit product, fruit commodity and production year. A great amount of data on the incidence of these mycotoxins in these matrixes can be further used in the development and reinforcement of measures to reduce the burden of their presence in juices and wines. This is important since PAT levels above the limit set by regulations were high and fruit juices are quite consumed by children. Although OTA contamination was low, effective ways to safeguard consumer exposure to PAT and OTA and consequently to protect public health are essential and indispensable.Facultad de Ciencias ExactasCentro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimento

Adaptation of O157:H7 and non-O157 Escherichia coli strains in orange juice and subsequent resistance to UV-C radiation

This study assessed the acid-adaptation of pathogenic and non-pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli in orange juice and the microbial resistance to the subsequent UV-C radiation treatment. Nine Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) and one strain of a non-pathogenic surrogate E. coli were used in this study. Each E. coli strain was inoculated in orange juice, following pre-exposure during 0, 1, 2, and 3 h at 10 ◦C. Then, the inoculated juices with the ten different strains separately were exposed to 0 and 2 J/cm2 of UV-C radiation. The D value (i.e., the UV-C dose in J/cm2 required to cause a one-log reduction in the target microorganism) was calculated. Further, the resistance coefficient [RC; i.e., the ratio between the D-values for the control condition (D0h) and each preexposure tested time (D1h, D2h, D3h)] were determined. The results indicated that the resistance of E. coli was influenced by the pre-exposure period in the orange juice, with increased resistance to UV-C observed for periods >2 h. Furthermore, the sensitivity of cells to subsequent UV-C treatment was found to be strain-dependent. The results may allow the development of more reliable UV-C radiation processes for orange juice processing aiming the inactivation of pathogenic E. coli.Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimento

Toxicological and bioactivity evaluation of blackcurrant press cake, sea buckthorn leaves and bark from Scots pine and Norway spruce extracts under a green integrated approach

Aqueous extracts from blackcurrant press cake (BC), Norway spruce bark (NS), Scots pine bark (SP), and sea buckthorn leaves (SB) were obtained using maceration and pressurized hot water and tested for their bioactivities. Maceration provided the extraction of higher dry matter contents, including total phenolics (TPC), anthocyanins, and condensed tannins, which also impacted higher antioxidant activity. NS and SB extracts presented the highest mean values of TPC and antioxidant activity. Individually, NS extract presented high contents of proanthocyanidins, resveratrol, and some phenolic acids. In contrast, SB contained a high concentration of ellagitannins, ellagic acid, and quercetin, explaining the antioxidant activity and antibacterial effects. SP and BC extracts had the lowest TPC and antioxidant activity. However, BC had strong antiviral efficacy, whereas SP can be considered a potential ingredient to inhibit α-amylase. Except for BC, the other extracts decreased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in HCT8 and A549 cells. Extracts did not inhibit the production of TNF-alpha in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated THP-1 macrophages but inhibited the ROS generation during the THP-1 cell respiratory burst. The recovery of antioxidant compounds from these by-products is incentivized for high value-added applications.</p

Challenges in developing methods for quantifying the effects of weather and climate on water-associated diseases: A systematic review

Infectious diseases attributable to unsafe water supply, sanitation and hygiene (e.g. Cholera, Leptospirosis, Giardiasis) remain an important cause of morbidity and mortality, especially in low-income countries. Climate and weather factors are known to affect the transmission and distribution of infectious diseases and statistical and mathematical modelling are continuously developing to investigate the impact of weather and climate on water-associated diseases. There have been little critical analyses of the methodological approaches. Our objective is to review and summarize statistical and modelling methods used to investigate the effects of weather and climate on infectious diseases associated with water, in order to identify limitations and knowledge gaps in developing of new methods. We conducted a systematic review of English-language papers published from 2000 to 2015. Search terms included concepts related to water-associated diseases, weather and climate, statistical, epidemiological and modelling methods. We found 102 full text papers that met our criteria and were included in the analysis. The most commonly used methods were grouped in two clusters: process-based models (PBM) and time series and spatial epidemiology (TS-SE). In general, PBM methods were employed when the bio-physical mechanism of the pathogen under study was relatively well known (e.g. Vibrio cholerae); TS-SE tended to be used when the specific environmental mechanisms were unclear (e.g. Campylobacter). Important data and methodological challenges emerged, with implications for surveillance and control of water-associated infections. The most common limitations comprised: non-inclusion of key factors (e.g. biological mechanism, demographic heterogeneity, human behavior), reporting bias, poor data quality, and collinearity in exposures. Furthermore, the methods often did not distinguish among the multiple sources of time-lags (e.g. patient physiology, reporting bias, healthcare access) between environmental drivers/exposures and disease detection. Key areas of future research include: disentangling the complex effects of weather/climate on each exposure-health outcome pathway (e.g. person-to-person vs environment-to-person), and linking weather data to individual cases longitudinally

Editorial overview: food safety

Sem informação18VIVI

Pathogen subtyping tools for risk assessment and management of produce-borne outbreaks

There are numerous avenues for pathogenic contamination of produce along the cultivation, processing and retail chain, which presents major challenges for tracing the sources and routes of produce contamination. Over time, rapid, cost effective and flexible pathogen detection/subtyping methods that can yield ample diversity with portable data, have high discriminatory potential and possess a high level of epidemiological concordance have been developed and optimized. While this has not necessarily eliminated microbiological hazards, and produce-associated outbreaks continue to occur, sustained advancements in bacterial subtyping technologies together with better information technologies, have significantly improved the ability of regulators, public health laboratories and governments to identify food safety threats lurking in food supply chain(s). These evolutions and advancements have also dramatically improved the capacity of relevant authorities to identify and manage foodborne outbreaks. This overview explores contemporary pathogen subtyping approaches; PFGE, MLVA (the immediate previous gold standard for typing foodborne pathogens) together with WGS, the most recently adopted pathogen typing approach. Epidemiological findings illustrate that although PFGE can discern unique patterns in bacterial DNA, WGS is specific and can clarify inconclusive PFGE results. The quality and performance of pathogen subtyping is however, not sufficient and strong surveillance systems representative of all putative sources are required to identify the sources of human infection and adequately manage produce borne outbreaks and risks328389CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQCOORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPES#302763/2014-7; #305804/2017-0; #148279/2017-1Sem informaçã

Understanding the public health burden of unconventional produce-associated enteropathogens

Emerging pathogens, which although have been periodically detected in produce items, are comparatively rarely implicated in large outbreaks. Many of these pathogens are inhabitants of the natural environment and may be major potential sources of contamination for fruits and vegetables. This overview examines the growing epidemiological relevance of three of such emerging pathogens; Arcobacter spp., Helicobacter pylori and Cronobacter sakazakii and the recent status of the scientific literature on their potential for transmission to humans via the consumption of fruits and vegetables. There appears to be a potentially important, yet overlooked exposure risk for humans via produce consumption. Certain crucial research gaps such as the need to optimize detection approaches for the swift and accurate isolation of these agents from produce items has been identified. To establish comprehensive microbiological criteria for produce safety, it is important to characterize all associated potential human pathogens323744CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQCOORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPES#305804/2017-0; #148279/2017-1Sem informaçã

Impact and significance of microbial contamination during fermentation for bioethanol production

The bioethanol visibility in the global matrix of fuels, linked to ecological appeal and the possibility of using new raw materials justifies the increasing investments for the development of new processes. This fuel results from fermentation of sugars by yeasts, however the growth of exogenous microorganisms is sometimes unavoidable. The lactic acid bacteria and wild yeasts are the main contaminants, affecting yeasts’ performance and leading to negative impacts such as the formation of organic acids, polysaccharides and gummy biofilms. Further undesirable effects of the microbial contamination during bioethanol processing comprise flocculation, reduction of yeast cells viability and decrease in process yield. In extreme cases, the reduction in process yield can reach 20–30%, making the process impracticable. In this article, the impact and significance of microbial contaminants (lactic acid bacteria and wild yeasts) during fermentation of must for bioethanol production are reviewed73423434CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQCOORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPES302763/2014-7Sem informaçã

Diversity and fate of spore forming bacteria in cocoa powder, milk powder, starch and sugar during processing: a review

Raw materials such as cocoa, milk powder, sugar, and starch are widely used in the formulation of a wide variety of processed foods. The unit operations applied during their production vary according to their specific properties, technological advances and needs, which undoubtedly affect the microbial composition found in these raw materials. The microbial composition of these raw materials is known to consist mainly of spores of bacteria, which are known to withstand harsh food processing conditions. Scope and research This article aims to discuss data available on the diversity of spore forming bacteria in selected raw materials (cocoa, milk powder, sugar, starch). These raw materials are contaminated mainly by spore forming bacteria, which can germinate and be a concern in products made with these ingredients. In addition, this review presents data gaps and studies needed to establish the fate of spore forming bacteria throughout the production chain of specific raw materials. Key findings and conclusions The review of literature conducted in this study indicates that data on the effects of processing and diversity of spore forming bacteria in sugar and starch are much scarcer compared with cocoa and milk powders. Thus, cutting-edge approaches combining quantitative data with metagenomics could be used to improve our knowledge on the fate and diversity of spore forming bacteria in raw materials. These approaches can be employed to guide further developments that are aimed at enhancing food safety and controlling food spoilage caused by spore forming bacteria76101118CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQCOORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPES#400806/2013-4; #302763/2014-7; 305804/2017-0#33003017027P