scholarly journals Food poisoning in hospitals in Scotland, 1978–87

1988 ◽  
Vol 101 (3) ◽  
pp. 661-667 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. W. Collier ◽  
J. C. M. Sharp ◽  
Aida F. MacLeod ◽  
G. I. Forbes ◽  
F. Mackay
Keyword(s):  
Clostridium Perfringens ◽  
Temperature Control ◽  
Marked Reduction ◽  
Food Poisoning ◽  
Poultry Meat ◽  
Cross Contamination ◽  
The Future ◽  
Raw Foods

SUMMARYDuring the 10-year period 1978–87 there were 48 outbreaks of food poisoning in Scottish hospitals affeeting a total of 2287 persons of whom 12 died. This compared with 50 outbreaks during the previous 5 years (1973–77) when over 1500 persons and 7 deaths were recorded. Although the incidence of outbreaks has decreased the average number of persons affected in outbreaks has increased. A marked reduction was seen in the incidence of outbreaks due to Clostridium perfringens, in contrast to foodborne salmonellosis which remains a problem. Thirty-four hospitals, of which 10 reported two or more outbreaks, were involved. The type of hospitals most frequently affected were general (14), psychiatric (13), geriatric (9) and hospitals for the mentally subnormal (7). Meat, including poultry meat, was incriminated in over 90% of outbreaks where a food vehicle was identified. In modern or re-equipped kitchens cooking in advance with subsequent reheating is being progressively discontinued as more food is being cooked on the day of consumption, a practice which may readily explain the decreasing incidence of outbreaks due to Cl. perfringens. Bacterial cross-contamination from poultry-meat and other raw foods, compounded by inadequate temperature control, however, continues to be a problem in some hospitals. It is too early as yet to determine whether the removal of Crown immunity will have any effect on the future incidence of hospital ‘food poisoning’.

scholarly journals Microbiological aspects of polyphosphate injection in the processing and chill storage of poultry

1979 ◽  
Vol 82 (1) ◽  
pp. 133-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. C. Mead ◽  
B. W. Adams
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Shelf Life ◽  
Clostridium Perfringens ◽  
Broiler Chickens ◽  
Food Poisoning ◽  
Cross Contamination ◽  
Injection Solution ◽  
Commercial Processing ◽  
Deep Muscle ◽  
Microbiological Aspects

SUMMARYDuring commercial processing of broiler chickens, injection of polyphosphate (Puron 604 or 6040) resulted in microorganisms being added to the deep breast muscle. The level of contamination was related to the microbiological condition of the injection solution.Injection of polyphosphate had no effect on the shelf-life of fresh chilled carcasses held at 1° or 10°C but changes were observed in the growth rate of microorganisms in the deep muscle and in the composition of the muscle microflora following storage.Cross-contamination of carcasses and the transfer of organisms from the skin to the deep muscle during injection was demonstrated with a marker strain ofClostridium perfringens. However, both processes were influenced by the number of marker organisms applied initially to the skin.The above findings are discussed in relation to the possible behaviour of any food poisoning bacteria present.

Choose your menu wisely: cuisine-associated food-poisoning risks in restaurants in England and Wales

2011 ◽  
Vol 140 (6) ◽  
pp. 997-1007 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. J. GORMLEY ◽  
N. RAWAL ◽  
C. L. LITTLE
Keyword(s):  
Service Sector ◽  
Food Poisoning ◽  
Food Service ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Poultry Meat ◽  
Contributory Factor ◽  
Cross Contamination ◽  
Surveillance Period ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Reduction Strategies

SUMMARYThe food service sector continues to be the most common setting for reported foodborne disease outbreaks in England and Wales. Using restaurant-associated foodborne outbreaks reported in England and Wales from 1992 to 2009, cuisine-specific risk factors were examined. Of 677 restaurant outbreaks, there were 11 795 people affected, 491 hospitalizations, and seven deaths; and Chinese, Indian, British and Italian cuisines were the most commonly implicated (26%, 16%, 13% and 10%, respectively). Salmonella spp. accounted for most outbreaks of all cuisine types, and particularly Chinese (76%, 133/175) and Italian (55%, 38/69). Poultry meat was the most frequently implicated food vehicle in outbreaks associated with Indian (30%), Chinese (21%), and British (18%) cuisines while for Italian cuisine, desserts and cakes were more frequently implicated (33%). Rice dishes were also a common outbreak food vehicle in those restaurants serving Chinese (22%) and Indian (16%) cuisine. Cross-contamination was the biggest contributory factor associated with Chinese (46%), British (33%) and Indian (30%) cuisines whereas inadequate cooking (38%) and use of raw shell eggs in lightly cooked or uncooked food (35%) were more often associated with Italian cuisine. Over the surveillance period, the proportion of Salmonella Enteritidis PT4 outbreaks in restaurants serving Chinese cuisine significantly decreased (P<0·0001) and this was mirrored by an increase in S. Enteritidis non-PT4 outbreaks (P<0·0001). Despite this change in proportion, contributory factors such as cross-contamination have continued to cause outbreaks throughout the 18 years. The results show that by stratifying the risks associated with restaurants by cuisine type, specific evidence of food control failures can be used to target foodborne illness reduction strategies.

scholarly journals Detection of Enterotoxigenic Clostridium perfringens Type A Isolates in American Retail Foods

2004 ◽  
Vol 70 (5) ◽  
pp. 2685-2691 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiyi Wen ◽  
Bruce A. McClane
Keyword(s):  
Heat Resistance ◽  
Clostridium Perfringens ◽  
Food Poisoning ◽  
Type A ◽  
Full Potential ◽  
Sampling Strategies ◽  
Positive Type ◽  
Type C ◽  
Raw Foods ◽  
Retail Food

ABSTRACT Currently there is only limited understanding of the reservoirs for Clostridium perfringens type A food poisoning. A recent survey (Y.-T. Lin and R. Labbe, Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 69:1642-1646, 2003) of non-outbreak American retail foods did not identify the presence of a single C. perfringens isolate carrying the enterotoxin gene (cpe) necessary for causing food poisoning. The present study revisited this issue, using revised methodology and food sampling strategies. In our survey, cpe-positive C. perfringens isolates were detected in ∼1.4% of ∼900 surveyed non-outbreak American retail foods. Interestingly, those enterotoxigenic isolates in non-outbreak foods appear indistinguishable from C. perfringens isolates known to cause food poisoning outbreaks: i.e., the enterotoxigenic retail food isolates all carry a chromosomal cpe gene, are classified as type A, and exhibit exceptional heat resistance. Collectively, these findings indicate that some American foods are contaminated, at the time of retail purchase, with C. perfringens isolates having full potential to cause food poisoning. Furthermore, demonstrating that type A isolates carrying a chromosomal cpe gene are the enterotoxigenic isolates most commonly present in foods helps to explain why these isolates (rather than type A isolates carrying a plasmid cpe gene or cpe-positive type C or D isolates) are strongly associated with food poisoning outbreaks. Finally, since type A chromosomal cpe isolates present in the surveyed raw foods exhibited strong heat resistance, it appears that exceptional heat resistance is not a survivor trait selected for by cooking but is instead an intrinsic trait possessed by many type A chromosomal cpe isolates.

scholarly journals A Putative Amidase Endolysin Encoded by Clostridium perfringens St13 Exhibits Specific Lytic Activity and Synergizes with the Muramidase Endolysin Psm

Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 245
Author(s):  
Hiroshi Sekiya ◽  
Maho Okada ◽  
Eiji Tamai ◽  
Toshi Shimamoto ◽  
Tadashi Shimamoto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Clostridium Perfringens ◽  
Antimicrobial Agents ◽  
Catalytic Domain ◽  
Food Poisoning ◽  
Binding Activity ◽  
Lytic Activity ◽  
Intestinal Bacterium ◽  
Terminal Domain ◽  
Cell Wall Binding

Clostridium perfringens is an often-harmful intestinal bacterium that causes various diseases ranging from food poisoning to life-threatening fulminant disease. Potential treatments include phage-derived endolysins, a promising family of alternative antimicrobial agents. We surveyed the genome of the C. perfringens st13 strain and identified an endolysin gene, psa, in the phage remnant region. Psa has an N-terminal catalytic domain that is homologous to the amidase_2 domain, and a C-terminal domain of unknown function. psa and gene derivatives encoding various Psa subdomains were cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli as N-terminal histidine-tagged proteins. Purified His-tagged full-length Psa protein (Psa-his) showed C. perfringens-specific lytic activity in turbidity reduction assays. In addition, we demonstrated that the uncharacterized C-terminal domain has cell wall-binding activity. Furthermore, cell wall-binding measurements showed that Psa binding was highly specific to C. perfringens. These results indicated that Psa is an amidase endolysin that specifically lyses C. perfringens; the enzyme’s specificity is highly dependent on the binding of the C-terminal domain. Moreover, Psa was shown to have a synergistic effect with another C. perfringens-specific endolysin, Psm, which is a muramidase that cleaves peptidoglycan at a site distinct from that targeted by Psa. The combination of Psa and Psm may be effective in the treatment and prevention of C. perfringens infections.

scholarly journals Innovative and Highly Sensitive Detection of Clostridium perfringens Enterotoxin Based on Receptor Interaction and Monoclonal Antibodies

Toxins ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 266
Author(s):  
Thea Neumann ◽  
Maren Krüger ◽  
Jasmin Weisemann ◽  
Stefan Mahrhold ◽  
Daniel Stern ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Monoclonal Antibodies ◽  
Clostridium Perfringens ◽  
Food Poisoning ◽  
Receptor Interaction ◽  
Clostridium Perfringens Enterotoxin ◽  
Fast Detection ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Basic And Applied Research ◽  
Highly Sensitive Detection

Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin (CPE) regularly causes food poisoning and antibiotic-associated diarrhea; therefore, reliable toxin detection is crucial. To this aim, we explored stationary and mobile strategies to detect CPE either exclusively by monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) or, alternatively, by toxin-enrichment via the cellular receptor of CPE, claudin-4, and mAb detection. Among the newly generated mAbs, we identified nine CPE-specific mAbs targeting five distinct epitopes, among them mAbs recognizing CPE bound to claudin-4 or neutralizing CPE activity in vitro. In surface plasmon resonance experiments, all mAbs and claudin-4 revealed excellent affinities towards CPE, ranging from 0.05 to 2.3 nM. Integrated into sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs), the most sensitive mAb/mAb and claudin-4/mAb combinations achieved similar detection limits of 0.3 pg/mL and 1.0 pg/mL, respectively, specifically detecting recombinant CPE from spiked feces and native CPE from 30 different C. perfringens culture supernatants. The implementation of mAb- and receptor-based ELISAs into a mobile detection platform enabled the fast detection of CPE, which will be helpful in clinical laboratories to diagnose diarrhea of assumed bacterial origin. In conclusion, we successfully employed an endogenous receptor and novel high affinity mAbs for highly sensitive and specific CPE-detection. These tools will be useful for both basic and applied research.

scholarly journals Factors Contributing to Heat Resistance of Clostridium perfringens Endospores

2008 ◽  
Vol 74 (11) ◽  
pp. 3328-3335 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Orsburn ◽  
Stephen B. Melville ◽  
David L. Popham
Keyword(s):  
Cell Wall ◽  
Heat Resistance ◽  
Clostridium Perfringens ◽  
Food Poisoning ◽  
High Heat ◽  
Relative Importance ◽  
High Heat Resistance ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Cooking Process ◽  
Determining Factors

ABSTRACT The endospores formed by strains of type A Clostridium perfringens that produce the C. perfringens enterotoxin (CPE) are known to be more resistant to heat and cold than strains that do not produce this toxin. The high heat resistance of these spores allows them to survive the cooking process, leading to a large number of food-poisoning cases each year. The relative importance of factors contributing to the establishment of heat resistance in this species is currently unknown. The present study examines the spores formed by both CPE+ and CPE− strains for factors known to affect heat resistance in other species. We have found that the concentrations of DPA and metal ions, the size of the spore core, and the protoplast-to-sporoplast ratio are determining factors affecting heat resistance in these strains. While the overall thickness of the spore peptidoglycan was found to be consistent in all strains, the relative amounts of cortex and germ cell wall peptidoglycan also appear to play a role in the heat resistance of these strains.

Epidemiology of Collective Food poisoning in Tlemcen- Western Algeria: A retrospective analysis of data from 2011-2020

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 539-547
Author(s):  
Meryem Allioua ◽  
Waffa Bouali ◽  
Ilham Mkedder
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Fecal Coliform ◽  
Food Poisoning ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Cross Contamination ◽  
Food Handlers ◽  
Epidemiological Monitoring ◽  
The World ◽  
Western Algeria ◽  
Family Focus

Food poisoning is a serious public health problem in the world that needs to be addressed as early as possible. However, mitigation efforts can be possi-ble only when data and information resulting from the implementation of monitoring or continuous surveillance are available. Here we report a study that was conducted taking into account all the data of poisoning report sheets, filled in by the doctor in charge of the case or, failing that, by the nurse, coming from health facilities (in sixteen regions in Tlemcen) were in-cluded in the analysis. For data processing, we have used some descriptive tools such as the frequencies and the lethality rates. The description of the sample concerned the characteristics of the poisoned population (year, gen-der, age, origin, hospitalisation, etc.) and the characteristics related to the suspected food. The survey showed a concentration of family focus, espe-cially in urban areas. Meats, Chickens and cream filled bakery food were the three most important incriminated foods and most of the infections in the outbreaks were related to fecal coliform, Clostridium and Staphylococcus. Some of the factors identified to contribute to food poisoning were lack of self-hygiene by food handlers and poor water and environmental supplies, poor preservation of food, the consumption of inadequately cooked or thawed meat or chicken, cross-contamination of food from infected food handlers, as well as the lack of awareness and information transmission and the lack of health infrastructures and means of communications. The present study highlights the needs for creating adequate infrastructure related to hygiene, regular epidemiological monitoring and increasing the awareness level of the residents.

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