Test Accurately IDs Food Pathogens, Origins

ITHACA, N.Y.Cornell University scientists have developed a new test that detect outbreaks of food-borne illness and determine their origins, according to a new study published in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology.

The team, lead by Cornell food science professor Martin Wiedmann, sequenced the genome of 47 samples of Salmonella20 that had been collected from human sources during the Salmonella outbreak linked to salami made with contaminated black and red pepper between July 2009 and April 2010, and 27 control samples collected from human, food, animal and environmental sources before the outbreak

The team was able to rapidly discriminate between outbreak-related cases and non-outbreak related cases, isolating four samples believed to be connected to the pepper contamination.

They also found a Salmonella strain that led to a nationwide recall of pistachio nuts in 2009 turned up in samples from four peopleonly one of whom had reported eating pistachios.

"The use of genome sequencing methods to investigate outbreaks of food-borne bacterial diseases is relatively new, and holds great promise as it can help to identify the temporal, geographical and evolutionary origin of an outbreak," Wiedmann said. "In particular, full genome sequence data may help to identify small outbreaks that may not be easily detected with lower resolution subtyping approaches."