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Listeria monocytogenes is the third most deadly foodborne pathogen in the United States. The bacterium is found in soil and water, contaminating raw food products and the processing environment, where it can persist for an extended period. Currently, testing of food contact and non-food contact surfaces is performed using an array of sampling devices and endpoint technologies, offering various levels of sensitivity, cost, user skill, and time to detection. Paper-based microfluidic devices (µPADs) are a rapid detection platform amenable to low-cost, user-friendly, and portable diagnostics. In this study, we developed and evaluated a µPAD platform specific for the colorimetric detection of the Listeria genus following recovery from food contact and non-food contact surfaces. For detection, four colorimetric substrates specific for the detection of β-glucosidase, two broths selective for the detection of Listeria spp., and a nonselective broth were evaluated to facilitate detection of Listeria spp. The limit of detection and time to detection were determined by using pure bacterial cultures. After 8 h enrichment, L. monocytogenes (102 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/coupon) was detected on every surface. After 18 h enrichment, L. monocytogenes (102 CFU/coupon) was detected on all surfaces with all swabbing devices. This study demonstrated the ability of the µPAD-based method to detect potentially stressed cells at low levels of environmental contamination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Salmonella is the leading cause of foodborne illnesses in the United States, and one of the main contributors to salmonellosis is the consumption of contaminated poultry and poultry products. Since deleterious effects of Salmonella on public health and the economy continue to occur, there is an ongoing need to develop more advanced detection methods that can identify Salmonella accurately and rapidly in foods before they reach consumers. Rapid detection and identification methods for Salmonella are considered to be an important component of strategies designed to prevent poultry and poultry product-associated illnesses. In the past three decades, there have been increasing efforts towards developing and improving rapid pathogen detection and characterization methodologies for application to poultry and poultry products. In this review, we discuss molecular methods for detection, identification and genetic characterization of Salmonella associated with poultry and poultry products. In addition, the advantages and disadvantages of the established and emerging rapid detection and characterization methods are addressed for Salmonella in poultry and poultry products. The methods with potential application to the industry are highlighted in this review. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Bacillus anthracis is a Gram-positive, spore-forming bacterium, which causes anthrax, an often lethal disease of animals and humans. Although the disease has been well studied since the nineteenth century, it has witnessed a renewed interest during the past decade, due to its use as a bioterrorist agent in the fall of 2001 in the USA. A number of techniques aimed at rapidly detecting B. anthracis, in environmental samples as well as in point-of-care settings for humans suspected of exposure to the pathogen, are now available. These technologies range from culture-based methods to portable DNA amplification devices. Despite recent developments, specific identification of B. anthracis still remains difficult because of its phenotypic and genotypic similarities with other Bacillus species. Accordingly, many efforts are being made to improve the specificity of B. anthracis identification. This mini-review discusses the current challenges around B. anthracis identification, not only in reach-back laboratories but also in the field (in operational conditions). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beach closure policies in the United States suffers from two shortcomings. Type I errors, in which clean beaches are closed, results when managers resort to extensive beach closures because they are unsure of the spatial extent of water contamination. Type II errors, in which contaminated beaches remain open, occur because the time from sampling to public notification can be between two and nine days. Coastal Ocean Observing Systems (COOS) could reduce the impact of both Type I and II errors. The COOS could reduce the spatial extent of beach closures by better predicting the fate of contaminants in coastal waters. An improved COOS also could reduce the time from sampling to public notification of contamination events. I estimate the lost recreational value associated with Type I errors (unnecessary closures) and the public health costs associated with Type II errors (unnecessary exposure to waterborne illnesses) for beaches in Southern California. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food safety is an important livelihood issue, which has always been focused attention by countries and governments all over the world. As food supply chains are becoming global, food quality control is essential for consumer protection as well as for the food industry. In recent years, a great part of food analysis is carried out using new techniques for rapid detection. As the first biochip technology that has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), there is an increasing interest in suspension array technology (SAT) for food and environmental analysis with advantages of rapidity, high accuracy, sensitivity, and throughput. Therefore, it is important for researchers to understand the development and application of this technology in food industry. Herein, we summarized the principle and composition of SAT and its application in food safety monitoring. The utility of SAT in detection of foodborne microorganisms, residues of agricultural and veterinary drugs, genetically modified food and allergens in recent years is elaborated, and the further development direction of SAT is envisaged.

• Successful, rapid detection of kratom, as indicated by the presence of mitragynine. • Four portable, field deployable devices effective in the detection of mitragynine. • Multiple devices in a workflow proved most effective for rapid analysis of products. The development of a method for the rapid screening of food and drug products for constituents such as mitragynine, the most abundant alkaloid found in Mitragyna speciosa (kratom) plant leaves, has become increasingly important. The use of kratom is said to produce stimulant or narcotic effects and poses risks of addiction, abuse, and dependence, much like other opioids. Direct Analysis in Real Time with thermal desorption mass spectrometry (DART-TD-MS), hand-held mass spectrometry, portable ion mobility spectrometry (IMS), and portable Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) were each evaluated as field-deployable screening techniques for the detection of mitragynine in food and drug products. These devices offer the potential for rapid, early detection of mitragynine in suspect products entering the United States through international mail facilities and other ports of entry. Ninety-six kratom products, including capsules, bulk powder, and bulk plant material, were analyzed by either direct sampling of the solid material or by solvent extraction. True and false positive and negative results are reported, based on comparison to results from qualitative screening using gas chromatography with mass spectral detection (GC–MS), liquid chromatography with mass spectral detection (LC–MS), and/or quantitative screening using high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection (HPLC-UV), with a discussion of the assessment of each technique for use in the field. Each device demonstrated attributes that would be favorable for use in screening of suspected mitragynine-containing products at places like ports of entry, and simultaneous deployment of two or more of these devices as part of a workflow would be the most effective for rapid screening of these products. This combination of rapid screening orthogonal techniques suited to a non-laboratory environment will allow onsite destruction of products found to contain mitragynine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• First description of an RAA assay to detect PCV3. • The PCV3 RAA assay is a sensitive, specific, and rapid method. • This new method can be used for epidemiological studies of PCV3. • The new method costs less than real-time PCR. Porcine circovirus type 3 (PCV3) is a novel member of the genus Circovirus , first detected in the United States in 2016, with subsequent reports in many countries. PCV3 infections have caused serious economic losses in the pig industry. Alternative rapid and sensitive assays for PCV3 detection are needed for clinical diagnosis, especially in laboratories not equipped with more sophisticated equipment. Here, a real-time recombinase-aided amplification assay (RAA) was developed for PCV3 detection. Specific primers and probes targeting the conserved region of the capsid gene of PCV3 were designed. The assay was performed at 39 °C for 30 min using specialized equipment. Furthermore, 36 clinical samples were used to evaluate the RAA. The analytical sensitivity of the RAA for PCV3 was 38 copies per reaction at 95% probability level, using a probit regression model. There was no cross-reactivity with other DNA viruses belonging to the Circoviridae and Parvoviridae families. The detection rate agreed with that obtained by an established real-time PCR assay with a kappa value of 1.0. Our results demonstrated that this new RAA could be used for the rapid, accurate, and sensitive detection of PCV3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sterility testing of cellular therapy products along with the associated environmental monitoring requirements for aseptic facilities, including compounding pharmacies, continues to impact clinical microbiology laboratories, as evidenced by the numerous discussions recurring on American Society for Microbiology Division C and ClinMicroNet listservs. This minireview provides an overview of this complex field of current good manufacturing practices (cGMP) based on biopharmaceutical industry standards and summarizes the compendial and alternative rapid microbial test methods available for product sterility and Mycoplasma testing. In addition, this minireview highlights major overarching regulatory requirements governing any laboratory performing product testing as regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These requirements are different from the more familiar clinical requirements of the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act of 1988 (CLIA '88), the College of American Pathologists (CAP), and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), all of which have no jurisdiction in this area. As the cellular therapy field continues to advance and an increasing number of medical centers participate in clinical trials of these novel therapies, it is critical that laboratories have a sound understanding of the major regulations and cGMP practices governing microbiological testing in the biopharmaceutical industry., (Copyright © 2020 American Society for Microbiology.)