Advanced Research on Foodborne Pathogens

A special issue of Pathogens (ISSN 2076-0817).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2023) | Viewed by 9241

Special Issue Editor

1. Institute of Food Safety, Animal Health and Environment “BIOR", Riga, Latvia
2. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, Jelgava, Latvia
Interests: molecular epidemiology of water- and foodborne pathogens; Listeria; Yersinia; Salmonella; Campylobacter; Legionella; antimicrobial resistance

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We have launched a Special Issue titled “Advanced Research for Foodborne Pathogens”. This Special Issue aims to solicit primary research articles, reviews, editorials, and commentaries on contemporary and hot topics from all related researchers, for consideration for publication.

Due to the pandemic, scholars have experienced significant delays in their research works. Despite the current situation, many researchers have devoted their time to conducting research and submitting their original papers on COVID-19 to Pathogens in the hope that these published papers might assistant researchers and governments in combating the virus. In the hope of acknowledging scholars’ works and avoiding inconveniences brought by the pandemic, we set up this special issue to receive new submissions. We sincerely hope that all experts in this research field will publish reviews or research papers based on their research over recent years and particularly research on foodborne pathogens, their epidemiology before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We look forward to your submissions.

Prof. Dr. Aivars Berzins
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pathogens is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Foodborne pathogens
  • Norovirus
  • Rotavirus
  • Campylobacter jejuni
  • Emerging foodborne pathogens
  • Zoonoses

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

9 pages, 465 KiB  
Article
Establishment and Characterization of the First Chinese National Standard for Nucleic Acid Amplification Technology Assays for Hepatitis E Virus Nucleic Acid Detection
by Manyu Li, Yan Wang, Kejian Li, Xiaotian Hao and Haiwei Zhou
Pathogens 2023, 12(10), 1195; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pathogens12101195 - 26 Sep 2023
Viewed by 821
Abstract
The detection of hepatitis E virus (HEV) RNA is the gold standard for HEV infection diagnosis. In order to address the quality control requirements for HEV RNA detection kits within China, we aimed to establish the first Chinese national standard for HEV RNA [...] Read more.
The detection of hepatitis E virus (HEV) RNA is the gold standard for HEV infection diagnosis. In order to address the quality control requirements for HEV RNA detection kits within China, we aimed to establish the first Chinese national standard for HEV RNA detection through a collaborative study. The candidate standard was quantified using digital PCR (dPCR). A total of five laboratories were invited to determine the estimated mean value of this national standard relative to the World Health Organization International Standard (WHO IS). Additionally, four commercial kits were used to assess the applicability of the candidate standard. The stability was determined by freeze–thaw cycles and storage at 37 °C, 25 °C and 4 °C. The estimated mean value of this national standard relative to the WHO IS was 5.67 log10 IU/mL. Two out of the four commercial kits can detect as low as the estimated limit of detection (LOD). The degradation rates of samples in the stability study ranged from 4% to 19%. In conclusion, we have established the first Chinese national standard for HEV nucleic acid detection against WHO IS, which can be employed to evaluate the quality of HEV RNA detection kits. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research on Foodborne Pathogens)
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6 pages, 270 KiB  
Article
Prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii Antibodies in Individuals Occupationally Exposed to Livestock in Portugal
by Daniela Almeida, João Quirino, Pedro Matos, Fernando Esteves, Rita Cruz, Helena Vala and João R. Mesquita
Pathogens 2022, 11(5), 603; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pathogens11050603 - 22 May 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1986
Abstract
Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide zoonotic disease with different and complex routes for transmission. Workers occupationally exposed to animals or raw meat and viscera (WOE) may be at more risk than the general population, however conflicting data exist on the risk of developing toxoplasmosis [...] Read more.
Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide zoonotic disease with different and complex routes for transmission. Workers occupationally exposed to animals or raw meat and viscera (WOE) may be at more risk than the general population, however conflicting data exist on the risk of developing toxoplasmosis due to this close contact. To add knowledge to this topic, the aim of the present study was to ascertain if WOE were more likely to be anti-T. gondii IgG seropositive than the general population as well as to study risk factors for T. gondii infection such as professional activity, gender, age, years of work and region. For this purpose, a case–control study using archived samples was setup. A total of 114 WOE (including pig slaughterhouse workers, butchers, veterinarians and farmers) and 228 anonymous volunteers (matched with cases by region, age and gender) were studied for anti-T. gondii IgG. A significantly higher anti-T. gondii IgG occurrence (p = 0.0282) was found in WOE when compared with the general population (72.8% [CI = 64.6–81.0%] versus 60.1% [CI = 54.6–65.6%]). Multivariate analysis showed that WOE of more than 50 years of age were more likely to be seropositive for anti-T. gondii IgG (aOR = 16.8; 95% CI 3.6–77.5; p < 0.001) than those aged less than 50 years. To our knowledge, this is the first case–control study on the prevalence of anti-T. gondii IgG in WOE in Portugal, also showing an added risk for T. gondii infection in those exposed to animals or their meat and viscera. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research on Foodborne Pathogens)
13 pages, 715 KiB  
Article
Virulence Determinants and Genetic Diversity of Yersinia Species Isolated from Retail Meat
by Margarita Terentjeva, Juris Ķibilds, Irēna Meistere, Silva Gradovska, Laura Alksne, Madara Streikiša, Jevgēnija Ošmjana and Olga Valciņa
Pathogens 2022, 11(1), 37; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pathogens11010037 - 29 Dec 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2397
Abstract
Yersinia enterocolitica is an important foodborne pathogen, and the determination of its virulence factors and genetic diversity within the food chain could help understand the epidemiology of yersiniosis. The aim of the present study was to detect the prevalence, and characterize the virulence [...] Read more.
Yersinia enterocolitica is an important foodborne pathogen, and the determination of its virulence factors and genetic diversity within the food chain could help understand the epidemiology of yersiniosis. The aim of the present study was to detect the prevalence, and characterize the virulence determinants and genetic diversity, of Yersinia species isolated from meat. A total of 330 samples of retailed beef (n = 150) and pork (n = 180) in Latvia were investigated with culture and molecular methods. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) was applied for the detection of virulence and genetic diversity. The antimicrobial resistance of pathogenic Y. enterocolitica isolates was detected in accordance with EUCAST. Yersinia species were isolated from 24% (79/330) of meats, and the prevalence of Y. enterocolitica in pork (24%, 44/180) was significantly higher (p < 0.05) than in beef (13%, 19/150). Y. enterocolitica pathogenic bioserovars 2/O:9 and 4/O:3 were isolated from pork samples (3%, 6/180). Only resistance to ampicillin was confirmed in Y. enterocolitica 4/O:3 and 2/O:9 isolates, but not in other antimicrobials. Major virulence determinants, including ail, inv, virF, ystA and myfA, were confirmed with WGS in Y. enterocolitica 2/O:9 and 4/O:3. MLST typing revealed 15 STs (sequence types) of Y. enterocolitica with ST12 and ST18, which were associated with pathogenic bioserovars. For Y. enterocolitica 1A, Y. kristensenii, Y. intermedia and Y. frederiksenii, novel STs were registered (ST680-688). The presence of virulence genes and genetic characteristics of certain Y. enterocolitica STs confirm the common knowledge that pork could be an important source of pathogenic Yersinia. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research on Foodborne Pathogens)
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9 pages, 270 KiB  
Article
Prevalence and Serotype Diversity of Salmonella enterica in the Estonian Meat Production Chain in 2016–2020
by Kaisa Kuus, Toomas Kramarenko, Jelena Sõgel, Mihkel Mäesaar, Maria Fredriksson-Ahomaa and Mati Roasto
Pathogens 2021, 10(12), 1622; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pathogens10121622 - 14 Dec 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2685
Abstract
Background: Salmonella enterica represents a considerable public concern worldwide, with farm animals often recognised as an important reservoir. This study gives an overview of the prevalence and serotype diversity of Salmonella over a 5-year period in the meat production chain in Estonia. Data [...] Read more.
Background: Salmonella enterica represents a considerable public concern worldwide, with farm animals often recognised as an important reservoir. This study gives an overview of the prevalence and serotype diversity of Salmonella over a 5-year period in the meat production chain in Estonia. Data on human salmonellosis over the same period are provided. Methods: Salmonella surveillance data from 2016 to 2020 were analysed. Results: The prevalence of Salmonella at the farm level was 27.7%, 3.3% and 0.1% for fattening pigs, cattle and poultry, respectively. S. Derby was the most prevalent serotype at the farm level for fattening pigs and S. Dublin for cattle. The top three serotypes isolated at the slaughterhouse and meat cutting levels were S. Derby, monophasic S. Typhimurium and S. Typhimurium with proportions of 64.7%, 9.4% and 7.0%, respectively. These serotypes were the top five most common Salmonella serotypes responsible for human infections in Estonia. S. Enteritidis is the main cause (46.9%) of human salmonellosis cases in Estonia, but in recent years, Enteritidis has not been detected at the slaughterhouse or meat cutting level. Conclusion: In recent years, monophasic S. Typhimurium has become epidemiologically more important in Estonia, with the second-highest cause in human cases and third-highest among the most prevalent serotypes of Salmonella enterica in the meat chain. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research on Foodborne Pathogens)
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