Category Archives: Clostridium difficile

Research – Prevalence and Molecular Characteristics of Clostridium difficile in Retail Meats, Food-Producing and Companion Animals, and Humans in Minnesota

Posted on October 30, 2018 by | Leave a comment

Journal of Food Protection Clostridium_difficile_01

Community-associated Clostridium difficile infection (CA-CDI) now accounts for approximately 50% of CDI cases in central Minnesota; animals and meat products are potential sources. From November 2011 to July 2013, we cultured retail meat products and fecal samples from food-producing and companion animals in central Minnesota for C. difficile by using standard methods. The resulting 51 C. difficile isolates, plus 30 archived local veterinary C. difficile isolates and 208 human CA-CDI case isolates from central Minnesota (from 2012) from the Minnesota Department of Health, were characterized molecularly, and source groups were compared using discriminant analysis. C. difficile was recovered from 0 (0%) of 342 retail meat samples and 51 (9%) of 559 animal fecal samples. Overall, the 81 animal source isolates and 208 human source isolates were highly diverse genetically. Molecular traits segregated extensively in relation to animal versus human origin. Discriminant analysis classified 95% of isolates correctly by source group; only five (2.5%) human source isolates were classified as animal source. These data do not support meat products or food-producing and companion animals as important sources of CA-CDI in the central Minnesota study region.

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Posted in Clostridium difficile, Food Hygiene, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Pathogen, Food Safety, Food Testing, Uncategorized

Research – Prevalence and Molecular Characteristics of Clostridium difficile in Retail Meats, Food-Producing and Companion Animals, and Humans in Minnesota

Posted on October 1, 2018 by | Leave a comment

Journal of Food Protection

Community-associated Clostridium difficile infection (CA-CDI) now accounts for approximately 50% of CDI cases in central Minnesota; animals and meat products are potential sources. From November 2011 to July 2013, we cultured retail meat products and fecal samples from food-producing and companion animals in central Minnesota for C. difficile by using standard methods. The resulting 51 C. difficile isolates, plus 30 archived local veterinary C. difficile isolates and 208 human CA-CDI case isolates from central Minnesota (from 2012) from the Minnesota Department of Health, were characterized molecularly, and source groups were compared using discriminant analysis. C. difficile was recovered from 0 (0%) of 342 retail meat samples and 51 (9%) of 559 animal fecal samples. Overall, the 81 animal source isolates and 208 human source isolates were highly diverse genetically. Molecular traits segregated extensively in relation to animal versus human origin. Discriminant analysis classified 95% of isolates correctly by source group; only five (2.5%) human source isolates were classified as animal source. These data do not support meat products or food-producing and companion animals as important sources of CA-CDI in the central Minnesota study region.

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Posted in Clostridium difficile, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Safety, Food Testing, Sulphite Reducing Clostridia, Uncategorized

Research – Study finds pathogenic bacteria, resistance genes in apartment mice

Posted on April 18, 2018 by | Leave a comment

Cidrap 

The house mouse is one of the most common rodent pests found around the world, particularly in urban areas, and has long been known for its ability to spread infectious diseases to humans. Now, a new study by researchers at Columbia University indicates that the unwelcome house guest also carries several species of pathogenic bacteria and antibiotic resistance genes.

In a study today in mBio, the researchers report that a genetic analysis of droppings collected from house mice in New York City detected several types of bacteria capable of causing gastrointestinal disease, including Shigella, Salmonella, Escherichia coli, and Clostridium difficile. They also found genes that confer resistance to fluoroquinolones, beta-lactam antibiotics, and methicillin.

Overall, more than a third of mice carried at least one potentially pathogenic bacterium, and nearly a quarter carried at least one antibiotic resistance gene.

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Posted in Clostridium difficile, Research, Uncategorized

Research – What is Clostridium difficile

Posted on November 15, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Journal

Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) is a spore-forming, gram-positive anaerobic bacillus that produces two toxins: toxin A and toxin B.  These toxins typically cause gastrointestinal disease, often with severe complications.  In rare cases, C. difficile-associated disease can be fatal.  Although C. difficile bacteria can be present in human intestinal tracts and cause no clinical symptoms (a condition called colonization), some individuals with C. difficile colonization are at increased risk of becoming ill.  The most common risk factor for C. difficile-associated disease is exposure to antibiotics, especially those with broad-spectrum activity.  Although less common, exposure to agents that suppress the immune system may also increase the risk of illness.  Advanced age, severe underlying illness, gastrointestinal surgery, use of nasogastric tubes, and gastrointestinal medications (such as gastrointestinal stimulants or antacids) have also been associated with an increased risk of colonization.  Most cases are acquired in hospitals or nursing homes, but an increased incidence of community–acquired C. difficile has been reported as well.

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Posted in Bacteria, Clostridium difficile, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, Research

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Research – Clostridium difficile – Possibly not Only a Clinical Issue

Posted on September 27, 2013 by | Leave a comment

New England Journal of MedicineClost

It has been thought that Clostridium difficile infection is transmitted predominantly within health care settings. However, endemic spread has hampered identification of precise sources of infection and the assessment of the efficacy of interventions.

Over a 3-year period, 45% of C. difficile cases in Oxfordshire were genetically distinct from all previous cases. Genetically diverse sources, in addition to symptomatic patients, play a major part in C. difficile transmission.

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Posted in Bacteria, Clostridium difficile, Food Hygiene, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, Laboratory, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research

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Research New Bacterial Identification Technology

Posted on January 17, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Food Poisoning Bulletin

xTAG Gastrointestinal Pathogen Panel (GPP), which recently received approval from US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), is one lab test that can do the job of many,  expertly scanning a solitary stool sample for 11 different illness-inducing organisms.

To many, that sounds an impressive feat in an of itself. But considering that 179 million Americans are stricken with gastroenteritis every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it’s also one that can come in handy. Infectious gastroenteritis is caused by certain viruses, bacteria, or parasites and can be spread easily through person-to-person contact or from contaminated food, water, and surfaces. Symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea.

The  xTAG can scan for  bacteria including Campylobacter, Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) toxin A/B, Escherichia coli (E. coli) O157, Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) LT/ST, Salmonella, Shigella and Shiga‐like Toxin producing E. coli (STEC) stx 1/stx 2. It can scan for viruses including Norovirus and Rotavirus A. And it can scan for parasites such as Cryptosporidium and Giardia.

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Posted in Bacteria, Campylobacter, Clostridium difficile, Cryptosporidium, E.coli, E.coli O103, E.coli O104, E.coli O145, E.coli O157, E.coli O26, EHEC, Food Safety, Food Technology, Food Testing, Food Virus, Giardia, Methods, Microbiology, Norovirus, Pathogen, Rotavirus

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Microbial safety and quality of various types of cooked chilled foods

Posted on October 24, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Science Direct

Refrigerated Processed Foods of Extended Durability (REPFEDs) are a diverse group of food products. Their production process consists of a variable sequence of different processing steps leading to various types of REPFEDs being introduced to the market. To assure microbial safety, the food industry relies on a combination of mild heat treatment (i.e. pasteurization), appropriate product formulation (i.e. pH, water activity, modified atmosphere packaging, preservatives), cold storage and shelf life limitation. In this paper a classification of REPFED food types is presented and their microbiological safety is evaluated. REPFEDs were classified according (i) to the production process and (ii) to the expected consumer’s reheating practices. To evaluate the microbiological safety, historical data on the microbial contamination of REPFEDS were collected from five companies, 706 analyses on the day of production (T0) and 2912 analyses at the end of shelf life (TEoS). Results demonstrated that the microbial safety of the products is overall satisfactory. The number of samples exceeding the acceptable levels for Bacillus cereus/sulfite reducing Clostridia (T0: 103 CFU/g, TEoS: 105 CFU/g) was 4.07%/1.94% at T0 and 2.04%/0.69% at TEoS. None of the samples exceeded the acceptable levels for Listeria monocytogenes (T0: Absent in 25 g, TEoS: max 102 CFU/g). In addition the temperature of 38 products was monitored during reheating according to instructions of the manufacturer. The pasteurization values obtained during reheating are very heterogeneous, and only 7 products obtained a P70 of 2 min throughout the entire product. To assess the effect of reheating on L. monocytogenes a challenge test (including reheating) of paella with L. monocytogenes was performed. This demonstrated that L. monocytogenes can grow up to 0.63 log CFU/g in 6 days at 4 °C and that reheating the paella according to the instructions on the label does not guarantee absence of L. monocytogenes. These findings demonstrate the microbial food safety of the tested REPFEDs is satisfactory, and that producers should not rely on the reheating at consumer level to eliminate L. monocytogenes.

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Posted in Bacillus, Bacillus cereus, Bacteria, Clostridium botulinum, Clostridium difficile, Clostridium perfringens, Eurofins Laboratories, Food Hygiene, Food Safety, Food Testing, Listeria, Listeria monocytogenes, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research

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Hospital Food – Clostridium difficile?

Posted on October 22, 2012 by | Leave a comment

WEBMD

A new report suggests that hospital food is frequently contaminated with the dangerous diarrhea bug Clostridium difficile (C. diff).

Houston researchers found that about one-fourth of nearly 100 hospital food samples they tested were positive for C. diff. Among the worst culprits: turkey, chicken, and egg products, vegetables and fruits, and desserts. Almost all were cooked.

It’s only one hospital. And no cases of human infection were linked to the food.

But together with past research, the findings suggest that contaminated food may be an important route of spread of C. diff in hospitals, says researcher Hoonmo Koo, MD, an infectious diseases specialist at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas.

Moreover, the temperatures at which hospital foods are cooked may be too low to kill the bug, he says.

An infectious diseases expert not involved with the research says the major C. diff strains that contaminate food are different from the ones responsible for human disease.

C. diff has been recovered from pigs, cows, and chickens, and the bug has been found in retail meat and salad greens. A few studies have found that the C. diff strains found in animals are the same ones causing human disease, but others have found the opposite.

A 2008 CDC study concluded that “although they share similar clinical features, evidence suggests that the predominant strains causing C. diff [disease] in humans and different animal species are distinct.”

Overall, though, surprisingly few studies have examined the possible link between C. diff disease in food, animals, and humans, according to both the CDC and Koo.

So the researchers tested about 2 tablespoons of each food item served over 80 days at a university hospital in Houston. The number that tested positive for C. diff:

  • Four of eight (50%) turkey samples
  • Four of 12 seafoods (33%)
  • Two of 17 beef servings (12%)
  • One of eight pork servings (13%)
  • Six of 14 chicken and egg products (43%)
  • Six of 27 vegetables and fruits (22%)
  • None of two grains
  • Three of five desserts (60%)

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Posted in Bacteria, Clostridium difficile, Food Safety, Food Testing, Microbiology, Pathogen, Research

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Research- Sheep E.coli O26 and Clostridium difficile

Posted on May 24, 2012 by | Leave a comment

American Society of Microbiology

A previous national survey of Escherichia coli in Norwegian sheep detected eae-positive (eae+) E. coli O26:H11 isolates in 16.3% (80/491) of the flocks. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the human-pathogenic potential of these ovine isolates by comparing them with E. coli O26 isolates from humans infected in Norway. All human E. coli O26 isolates studied carried the eae gene and shared flagellar type H11. Two-thirds of the sheep flocks and 95.1% of the patients harbored isolates containing arcA allele type 2 and espK and were classified as enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) (stx positive) or EHEC-like (stx negative). These isolates were further divided into group A (EspK2 positive), associated with stx2-EDL933 and stcEO103, and group B (EspK1 positive), associated with stx1a. Although the stx genes were more frequently present in isolates from patients (46.3%) than in those from sheep flocks (5%), more than half of the ovine isolates in the EHEC/EHEC-like group had multiple-locus variable number of tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) profiles that were identical to those seen in stx-positive human O26:H11 isolates. This indicates that EHEC-like ovine isolates may be able to acquire stx-carrying bacteriophages and thereby have the possibility to cause serious illness in humans. The remaining one-third of the sheep flocks and two of the patients had isolates fulfilling the criteria for atypical enteropathogenic E. coli (aEPEC): arcA allele type 1 and espK negative (group C). The majority of these ovine isolates showed MLVA profiles not previously seen in E. coli O26:H11 isolates from humans. However, according to their virulence gene profile, the aEPEC ovine isolates should be considered potentially pathogenic for humans. In conclusion, sheep are an important reservoir of human-pathogenic E. coli O26:H11 isolates in Norway.

American Society of Microbiology

The prevalence of Clostridium difficile in retail meat samples has varied widely. The food supply may be a source for C. difficile infections. A total of 102 ground meat and sausage samples from 3 grocers in Pittsburgh, PA, were cultured for C. difficile. Brand A pork sausages were resampled between May 2011 and January 2012. Two out of 102 (2.0%) meat products initially sampled were positive for C. difficile; both were pork sausage from brand A from the same processing facility (facility A). On subsequent sampling of brand A products, 10/19 samples from processing facility A and 1/10 samples from 3 other facilities were positive for C. difficile. The isolates recovered were inferred ribotype 078, comprising 6 genotypes. The prevalence of C. difficile in retail meat may not be as high as previously reported in North America. When contamination occurs, it may be related to events at processing facilities.

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Posted in Bacteria, Clostridium difficile, E.coli, E.coli O26, Enterobacteriaceae, Eurofins Laboratories, Microbiology, Research

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