1
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Ren F, Chen Y, Yang S, Zhang Y, Liu Y, Ma Y, Wang Y, Liu Y, Dong Q, Lu D. Characterization of emetic Bacillus cereus biofilm formation and cereulide production in biofilm. Food Res Int 2024; 192:114834. [PMID: 39147521 DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2024.114834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2024] [Revised: 07/21/2024] [Accepted: 07/21/2024] [Indexed: 08/17/2024]
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is a well-known foodborne pathogen that can cause human diseases, including vomiting caused by emetic toxin, cereulide, requiring 105-108 cells per gram to cause the disease. The bacterial cells may be eliminated during processing, but cereulide can survive in most processing techniques due to its resistance to high temperatures, extreme pH and proteolytic enzymes. Herein, we reported dynamic processes of biofilm formation of four different types and cereulide production within the biofilm. Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) images revealed that biofilms of the four different types reach each stage at different time points. Among the extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) components of the four biofilms formed by the emetic B. cereus F4810/72 strain, proteins account for the majority. In addition, there are significant differences (p < 0.05) in the EPS components at the same stage among biofilms of different types. The time point at which cereulide was first detected in the four types of biofilms was 24 h. In the biofilm of B. cereus formed in ultra-high-temperature (UHT) milk, the first peak of cereulide appeared at 72 h. The cereulide content of the biofilms formed in BHI was mostly higher than that of the biofilms formed in UHT milk. This study contributes to a better understanding of food safety issues in the industry caused by biofilm and cereulide toxin produced by B. cereus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fanchong Ren
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China.
| | - Yuhang Chen
- Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shanghai 200336, China.
| | - Shuo Yang
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China.
| | - Yinan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Milk and Dairy Products Detection and Monitoring Technology for State Market Regulation, Shanghai Institute of Quality Inspection and Technical Research, Shanghai 200233, China.
| | - Yangtai Liu
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China.
| | - Yue Ma
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China.
| | - Yating Wang
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China.
| | - Yang Liu
- Key Laboratory of Milk and Dairy Products Detection and Monitoring Technology for State Market Regulation, Shanghai Institute of Quality Inspection and Technical Research, Shanghai 200233, China.
| | - Qingli Dong
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China.
| | - Dasheng Lu
- Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shanghai 200336, China.
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2
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Suto K, Hayashi M, Fujita M, Abe K, Takahashi A, Ohira H. Bacillus cereus Sepsis in a Patient with Severe Alcoholic Hepatitis. Intern Med 2024; 63:1707-1711. [PMID: 37926546 PMCID: PMC11239256 DOI: 10.2169/internalmedicine.2553-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 09/22/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023] Open
Abstract
A 57-year-old woman with a liver injury was referred to our hospital. She had a history of heavy alcohol consumption and had developed severe alcoholic hepatitis. Blood cultures revealed bacteremia caused by Bacillus cereus. The patient was treated with short-term steroid therapy for liver injury and vancomycin administration for B. cereus sepsis, which led to recovery. The findings in the present case suggest the need for empirical therapy with vancomycin in patients with severe alcoholic hepatitis and suspected B. cereus infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kazuto Suto
- Department of Gastroenterology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Manabu Hayashi
- Department of Gastroenterology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Masashi Fujita
- Department of Gastroenterology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Kazumichi Abe
- Department of Gastroenterology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Atsushi Takahashi
- Department of Gastroenterology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Hiromasa Ohira
- Department of Gastroenterology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
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Meng JN, Xu ZK, Li PR, Zeng X, Liu Y, Xu ZL, Wang J, Ding Y, Shen X. Universal and Naked-Eye Diagnostic Platform for Emetic Bacillus cereus Based on RPA-Assisted CRISPR/Cas12a. JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY 2024; 72:8823-8830. [PMID: 38578074 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.3c06744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/06/2024]
Abstract
Emetic Bacillus cereus (B. cereus), which can cause emetic food poisoning and in some cases even fulminant liver failure and death, has aroused widespread concern. Herein, a universal and naked-eye diagnostic platform for emetic B. cereus based on recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA)-assisted CRISPR/Cas12a was developed by targeting the cereulide synthetase biosynthetic gene (cesB). The diagnostic platform enabled one-pot detection by adding components at the bottom and cap of the tube separately. The visual limit of detection of RPA-CRISPR/Cas12a for gDNA and cells of emetic B. cereus was 10-2 ng μL-1 and 102 CFU mL-1, respectively. Meanwhile, it maintained the same sensitivity in the rice, milk, and cooked meat samples even if the gDNA was extracted by simple boiling. The whole detection process can be finished within 40 min, and the single cell of emetic B. cereus was able to be recognized through enrichment for 2-5 h. The good specificity, high sensitivity, rapidity, and simplicity of the RPA-assisted CRISPR/Cas12a diagnostic platform made it serve as a potential tool for the on-site detection of emetic B. cereus in food matrices. In addition, the RPA-assisted CRISPR/Cas12a assay is the first application in emetic B. cereus detection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing-Nan Meng
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- College of Food Engineering, Anhui Science and Technology University, Chuzhou 233100, China
- Key Laboratory for Biobased Materials and Energy of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Ze-Ke Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Peng-Ru Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Xi Zeng
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Guangzhou Institute of Food Inspection, Guangzhou 510410, China
| | - Yingju Liu
- Key Laboratory for Biobased Materials and Energy of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Zhen-Lin Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Juan Wang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Yu Ding
- Department of Food Science and Technology, Institute of Food Safety and Nutrition, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Xing Shen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
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Kranzler M, Walser V, Stark TD, Ehling-Schulz M. A poisonous cocktail: interplay of cereulide toxin and its structural isomers in emetic Bacillus cereus. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2024; 14:1337952. [PMID: 38596651 PMCID: PMC11002159 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1337952] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 04/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Food intoxications evoked by emetic Bacillus cereus strains constitute a serious threat to public health, leading to emesis and severe organ failure. The emetic peptide toxin cereulide, assembled by the non-ribosomal peptide synthetase CesNRPS, cannot be eradicated from contaminated food by usual hygienic measures due to its molecular size and structural stability. Next to cereulide, diverse chemical variants have been described recently that are produced concurrently with cereulide by CesNRPS. However, the contribution of these isocereulides to the actual toxicity of emetic B. cereus, which produces a cocktail of these toxins in a certain ratio, is still elusive. Since cereulide isoforms have already been detected in food remnants from foodborne outbreaks, we aimed to gain insights into the composition of isocereulides and their impact on the overall toxicity of emetic B. cereus. The amounts and ratios of cereulide and isocereulides were determined in B. cereus grown under standard laboratory conditions and in a contaminated sample of fried rice balls responsible for one of the most severe food outbreaks caused by emetic B. cereus in recent years. The ratios of variants were determined as robust, produced either under laboratory or natural, food-poisoning conditions. Examination of their actual toxicity in human epithelial HEp2-cells revealed that isocereulides A-N, although accounting for only 10% of the total cereulide toxins, were responsible for about 40% of the total cytotoxicity. An this despite the fact that some of the isocereulides were less cytotoxic than cereulide when tested individually for cytotoxicity. To estimate the additive, synergistic or antagonistic effects of the single variants, each cereulide variant was mixed with cereulide in a 1:9 and 1:1 binary blend, respectively, and tested on human cells. The results showed additive and synergistic impacts of single variants, highlighting the importance of including not only cereulide but also the isocereulides in routine food and clinical diagnostics to achieve a realistic toxicity evaluation of emetic B. cereus in contaminated food as well as in patient samples linked to foodborne outbreaks. Since the individual isoforms confer different cell toxicity both alone and in association with cereulide, further investigations are needed to fully understand their cocktail effect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markus Kranzler
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | - Veronika Walser
- Food Chemistry and Molecular and Sensory Science, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany
| | - Timo D. Stark
- Food Chemistry and Molecular and Sensory Science, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany
| | - Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
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Masquelier J, Segers C, Jacobs B, Van Nieuwenhuysen T, Delbrassinne L, Van Hoeck E. Validation of a Targeted LC-MS/MS Method for Cereulide and Application in Food and Faeces. Toxins (Basel) 2023; 16:13. [PMID: 38251230 PMCID: PMC10819378 DOI: 10.3390/toxins16010013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2023] [Revised: 12/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Cereulide is an emetic toxin produced by some strains of Bacillus cereus. This bacterial toxin, a cyclic 1.2 kDa dodecadepsipeptide, is stable to heat and acids and causes nausea and vomiting when ingested via contaminated food. This work aimed to develop and validate a targeted analytical method applying liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to quantify this toxin in food and human faeces. Samples were extracted with acetonitrile in the presence of 13C6-cereulide, a labelled internal standard, and purified by centrifugation and filtration. The limits of quantification were 0.5 and 0.3 µg kg-1 for food and faeces, respectively. The linearity of the method was very good, with calculated R2 values above 0.995. The mean recovery of the method was within the acceptable range of 70.0%-120.0%, the repeatability was not higher than 7.3%, and the highest intra-laboratory reproducibility was 8.9%. The estimated range for the expanded measurement uncertainty was between 5.1% and 18.0%. The LC-MS/MS method was used to analyse one food sample (rice) from a Belgian foodborne outbreak and five faecal samples from patients with clinical symptoms after consumption of the contaminated rice. The levels of cereulide were 12.22 µg g-1 for food and between 6.32 and 773.37 ng g-1 for faecal samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julien Masquelier
- Organic Contaminants and Additives, Sciensano, Scientific Institute of Public Health, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Céline Segers
- Organic Contaminants and Additives, Sciensano, Scientific Institute of Public Health, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Bram Jacobs
- Food Pathogens, Sciensano, Scientific Institute of Public Health, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Tom Van Nieuwenhuysen
- Food Pathogens, Sciensano, Scientific Institute of Public Health, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Laurence Delbrassinne
- Food Pathogens, Sciensano, Scientific Institute of Public Health, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Els Van Hoeck
- Organic Contaminants and Additives, Sciensano, Scientific Institute of Public Health, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
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6
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Jenull S, Bauer T, Silbermayr K, Dreer M, Stark TD, Ehling-Schulz M. The toxicological spectrum of the Bacillus cereus toxin cereulide points towards niche-specific specialisation. Environ Microbiol 2023; 25:2231-2249. [PMID: 37354053 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 06/26/2023]
Abstract
Most microbes share their environmental niches with very different forms of life thereby engaging in specialised relationships to enable their persistence. The bacterium Bacillus cereus occurs ubiquitously in the environment with certain strain backgrounds causing foodborne and opportunistic infections in humans. The emetic lineage of B. cereus is capable of producing the toxin cereulide, which evokes emetic illnesses. Although food products favouring the accumulation of cereulide are known, the ecological role of cereulide and the environmental niche of emetic B. cereus remain elusive. To better understand the ecology of cereulide-producing B. cereus, we systematically assayed the toxicological spectrum of cereulide on a variety of organisms belonging to different kingdoms. As cereulide is a potassium ionophore, we further tested the effect of environmental potassium levels on the action of cereulide. We found that adverse effects of cereulide exposure are species-specific, which can be exacerbated with increased environmental potassium. Additionally, we demonstrate that cereulide is produced within an insect cadaver indicating its potential ecological function for a saprophytic lifestyle. Collectively, distinct cereulide susceptibilities of other organisms may reflect its role in enabling competitive niche specialization of emetic B. cereus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabrina Jenull
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Tobias Bauer
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Katja Silbermayr
- Institute of Parasitology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Maximilian Dreer
- Department of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Unit, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Timo D Stark
- Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany
| | - Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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7
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Meng J, Shen H, Luo L, Zeng X, Wang J, Liu Y, Xu ZL. Engineered DNAzyme Enables Homogeneous Detection of Cereulide via Polychromic Fluorescence Modality. Anal Chem 2023; 95:14135-14142. [PMID: 37669908 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.3c03166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/07/2023]
Abstract
Cereulide, the exotoxin of emetic Bacillus cereus, has garnered considerable attention due to its capacity to produce foodborne poisonings and great chemical stability. Herein, a G-quadruplex-hemin DNAzyme-based biosensor was developed to detect cereulide in the homogeneous solution. Due to the special ring structure and high affinity to K+, cereulide can be attracted and intercalated into the G-quadruplex; thus, the properties of the G4 DNAzyme can be altered. The melting temperature (Tm) of the G4 DNAzyme in the presence or absence of cereulide was 58.75 and 50.10 °C, respectively, proving the intercalation of cereulide into the G4 DNAzyme. By using the polychromic fluorescence modality of CdTe quantum dots and o-phenylenediamine to assess the variation in the catalytic activity of the DNAzyme, the intercalation of cereulide had bidirectional effects in G4 DNAzyme-mediated reactions, showing that the fluorescence intensity of CdTe quantum dots displayed a linear relationship with the concentration of cereulide from 0.16 to 40 μg/mL with the limit of detection (LOD) of 0.10 μg/mL, while the fluorescence intensity of DAP exhibited a linear relationship with the concentration of cereulide from 0.02 to 40 μg/mL with the LOD of 0.01 μg/mL. It will be a perspective step of controlling cereulide as a hazardous material in food or the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingnan Meng
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- Key Laboratory for Biobased Materials and Energy of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
- College of Food Engineering, Anhui Science and Technology University, Chuzhou 233100, China
| | - Haoran Shen
- Key Laboratory for Biobased Materials and Energy of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Lin Luo
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Xi Zeng
- Guangzhou Institute of Food Inspection, Guangzhou 510410, China
| | - Juan Wang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Yingju Liu
- Key Laboratory for Biobased Materials and Energy of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Zhen-Lin Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
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Buchacher T, Digruber A, Kranzler M, Del Favero G, Ehling-Schulz M. Bacillus cereus extracellular vesicles act as shuttles for biologically active multicomponent enterotoxins. Cell Commun Signal 2023; 21:112. [PMID: 37189133 PMCID: PMC10184354 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-023-01132-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Extracellular vesicles (EVs) from Gram-positive bacteria have gained considerable importance as a novel transport system of virulence factors in host-pathogen interactions. Bacillus cereus is a Gram-positive human pathogen, causing gastrointestinal toxemia as well as local and systemic infections. The pathogenicity of enteropathogenic B. cereus has been linked to a collection of virulence factors and exotoxins. Nevertheless, the exact mechanism of virulence factor secretion and delivery to target cells is poorly understood. RESULTS Here, we investigate the production and characterization of enterotoxin-associated EVs from the enteropathogenic B. cereus strain NVH0075-95 by using a proteomics approach and studied their interaction with human host cells in vitro. For the first time, comprehensive analyses of B. cereus EV proteins revealed virulence-associated factors, such as sphingomyelinase, phospholipase C, and the three-component enterotoxin Nhe. The detection of Nhe subunits was confirmed by immunoblotting, showing that the low abundant subunit NheC was exclusively detected in EVs as compared to vesicle-free supernatant. Cholesterol-dependent fusion and predominantly dynamin-mediated endocytosis of B. cereus EVs with the plasma membrane of intestinal epithelial Caco2 cells represent entry routes for delivery of Nhe components to host cells, which was assessed by confocal microscopy and finally led to delayed cytotoxicity. Furthermore, we could show that B. cereus EVs elicit an inflammatory response in human monocytes and contribute to erythrocyte lysis via a cooperative interaction of enterotoxin Nhe and sphingomyelinase. CONCLUSION Our results provide insights into the interaction of EVs from B. cereus with human host cells and add a new layer of complexity to our understanding of multicomponent enterotoxin assembly, offering new opportunities to decipher molecular processes involved in disease development. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanja Buchacher
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | - Astrid Digruber
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | - Markus Kranzler
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | - Giorgia Del Favero
- Department of Food Chemistry and Toxicology, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Core Facility Multimodal Imaging, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria.
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Wang Z, Xia H, Fan F, Zhang J, Liu H, Cao J. Survival of community-acquired Bacillus cereus sepsis with venous sinus thrombosis in an immunocompetent adult man - a case report and literature review. BMC Infect Dis 2023; 23:213. [PMID: 37024789 PMCID: PMC10080751 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-023-08176-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2022] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Bacillus cereus infections in immunocompetent patients are uncommon and mainly observed in fragile patients. It can cause lethal infections with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS). However, a patient presenting as venous sinus thrombosis and survival without sequela has not been reported. CASE PRESENTATION A 20-year-old previously healthy male developed gastroenteritis after a meal, followed by fever, convulsions, and severe disturbance of consciousness. The patient had significant leukocytosis with a mildly elevated D-dimer, creatinine level, and respiratory failure. The CT(computed tomography) revealed fatal brain edema and subarachnoid hemorrhage. Previous blood culture in a local hospital revealed B. cereus, which was confirmed by mNGS(metagenomic next-generation sequencing) using blood and urine in our hospital. Accordingly, B. cereus sepsis with MODS were considered. Later, cerebral venous sinus thrombosis was proved. After anti-infection (linezolid 0.6 g, Q12h; and meropenem 1.0 g, Q8h), anti-coagulant (enoxaparin 6000U, Q12h), and other symptomatic treatments, the patient recovered completely without sequela at the 6-month follow-up. CONCLUSIONS This case suggests that in immunocompetent adults, there is still a risk of infection with B. cereus, causing severe MODS. Special attention should be paid to venous sinus thrombosis and subarachnoid hemorrhage in such cases, while, anti-coagulant is essential therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zengrong Wang
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, 030001, China
| | - Han Xia
- Department of Scientific Affairs, Hugo Biotech Co., Ltd., No.1, East Disheng Road, Beijing, 100176, China
| | - Fangfang Fan
- Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, The First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, 030001, China
| | - Jin Zhang
- Department of Neurology, The First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, 030001, China
| | - Hong Liu
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, 030001, China
| | - Jing Cao
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, 030001, China.
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10
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Yang S, Wang Y, Liu Y, Jia K, Zhang Z, Dong Q. Cereulide and Emetic Bacillus cereus: Characterizations, Impacts and Public Precautions. Foods 2023; 12:833. [PMID: 36832907 PMCID: PMC9956921 DOI: 10.3390/foods12040833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2023] [Revised: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 02/12/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Cereulide, which can be produced by Bacillus cereus, is strongly associated with emetic-type food poisoning outbreaks. It is an extremely stable emetic toxin, which is unlikely to be inactivated by food processing. Considering the high toxicity of cereulide, its related hazards raise public concerns. A better understanding of the impact of B. cereus and cereulide is urgently needed to prevent contamination and toxin production, thereby protecting public health. Over the last decade, a wide range of research has been conducted regarding B. cereus and cereulide. Despite this, summarized information highlighting precautions at the public level involving the food industry, consumers and regulators is lacking. Therefore, the aim of the current review is to summarize the available data describing the characterizations and impacts of emetic B. cereus and cereulide; based on this information, precautions at the public level are proposed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Qingli Dong
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Jungong Road No. 334, Yangpu District, Shanghai 200093, China
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11
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Meng J, Shen H, Chen J, Shen X, Xu Z, Wang J, Liu Y, Xu ZL. Development of Cu-doped CeO 2 nanospheres mimic nanozyme-based immunoassay for the specific screening of Bacillus cereus. Mikrochim Acta 2022; 189:312. [PMID: 35920920 DOI: 10.1007/s00604-022-05415-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2022] [Accepted: 07/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Due to the highly similar genetic background, it is difficult to distinguish Bacillus cereus (B. cereus) with other members of B. cereus group. Herein, an antibody-based colorimetric immunoassay using Cu-doped CeO2 nanospheres as peroxidase mimics was developed for the detection of B. cereus in food. First, monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and polyclonal antibody (pAb) with good specificity to B. cereus were prepared and characterized. Second, the regular-shaped hollow Cu/CeO2 nanospheres with highly catalytic activity and biocompatibility were synthesized as mimic nanozymes to capture secondary antibody. Finally, a sandwich colorimetric immunoassay for the specific and sensitive detection of B. cereus was developed, showing linear detection range from 3.2 × 102 to 1 × 105 CFU/mL and a limit detection of 1.7 × 102 CFU/mL. The developed immunoassay holds great potential as an effective tool for detecting B. cereus in food poisoning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingnan Meng
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
- Key Laboratory for Biobased Materials and Energy of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Haoran Shen
- Key Laboratory for Biobased Materials and Energy of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Jialin Chen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Xing Shen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Zeke Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Juan Wang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China
| | - Yingju Liu
- Key Laboratory for Biobased Materials and Energy of Ministry of Education, College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China.
| | - Zhen-Lin Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China.
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12
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Takahashi N, Nagai S, Tomimatsu Y, Saito A, Kaneta N, Tsujimoto Y, Tamura H. Simultaneous Discrimination of Cereulide-Producing Bacillus cereus and Psychrotolerant B. cereus Group by Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization-Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry. J Food Prot 2022; 85:1192-1202. [PMID: 35687734 DOI: 10.4315/jfp-21-450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2021] [Accepted: 06/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
ABSTRACT Cereulide-producing Bacillus cereus, which causes foodborne illnesses with vomiting, and psychrotolerant B. cereus group strains such as Bacillus mycoides, which can grow at ≥7°C and cause spoilage of refrigerated foods, are significant concerns for the food industry. Rapid and simple methods to discriminate the cereulide-producing B. cereus and psychrotolerant B. cereus group strains from other B. cereus group strains are needed. We developed a novel, rapid, and simple method with matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) analysis for simultaneous discrimination of these two groups from other B. cereus group strains. A potassium adduct of cereulide was used to detect cereulide-producing B. cereus, and three ribosomal subunit proteins (L30, S16, and S20) were used to detect psychrotolerant B. cereus group. A total of 51 B. cereus group strains were analyzed by MALDI-TOF MS. The biomarkers allowed successful discrimination of 16 cereulide-producing B. cereus and 15 psychrotolerant B. cereus group strains from other B. cereus group strains. The results showed that this MALDI-TOF MS analysis allows simultaneous discrimination of cereulide-producing B. cereus and psychrotolerant B. cereus group strains from other B. cereus group strains. This efficient method has the potential to be a valuable tool for ensuring food safety. HIGHLIGHTS
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Affiliation(s)
- Naomi Takahashi
- Food Quality and Safety Research Laboratories, Meiji Co., Ltd., 1-29-1 Nanakuni, Hachioji, Tokyo, 192-0919, Japan
| | - Satomi Nagai
- Faculty of Agriculture, Meijo University, 1-501 Shiogamaguchi, Tempaku-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 468-8502, Japan
| | - Yumiko Tomimatsu
- Food Quality and Safety Research Laboratories, Meiji Co., Ltd., 1-29-1 Nanakuni, Hachioji, Tokyo, 192-0919, Japan
| | - Ayumi Saito
- Food Quality and Safety Research Laboratories, Meiji Co., Ltd., 1-29-1 Nanakuni, Hachioji, Tokyo, 192-0919, Japan
| | - Naoko Kaneta
- Food Quality and Safety Research Laboratories, Meiji Co., Ltd., 1-29-1 Nanakuni, Hachioji, Tokyo, 192-0919, Japan
| | - Yoshinori Tsujimoto
- Food Quality and Safety Research Laboratories, Meiji Co., Ltd., 1-29-1 Nanakuni, Hachioji, Tokyo, 192-0919, Japan
| | - Hiroto Tamura
- Faculty of Agriculture, Meijo University, 1-501 Shiogamaguchi, Tempaku-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 468-8502, Japan
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13
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Detection of emetic Bacillus cereus and the emetic toxin cereulide in food matrices: Progress and perspectives. Trends Food Sci Technol 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tifs.2022.03.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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14
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Influence of the Phagemid PfNC7401 on Cereulide-Producing Bacillus cereus NC7401. Microorganisms 2022; 10:microorganisms10050953. [PMID: 35630395 PMCID: PMC9143728 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms10050953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Revised: 04/22/2022] [Accepted: 04/29/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
A phagemid-cured strain, NC7401-∆Pf, was constructed to survey the biological function of the plasmidal prophage PfNC7401 in cereulide-producing Bacillus cereus NC7401. The transcriptome analysis between the mutant and the wild strains revealed a series of differentially expressed genes mainly involved in different function classifications, including the two-component signal transduction system, bacterial structure, transporters, related antibiotic response, purine biosynthesis, non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPS) and related secondary metabolites, and aromatic or other amino acid synthesis. BIOLOG and phenotypic experiment analyses confirmed that PfNC7401 may affect phage immunity and the metabolism of several amino acids, including L-Alanine, which was suggested to be related to one precursor (D-Alanine) of cereulide synthesis. However, neither the transcription levels of the cereulide production-related genes (e.g., ilvB, cesA, cesB, and cesH) nor the cereulide production nor cell cytotoxicity were affected by the presence or absence of PfNC7401, corresponding with the transcriptome data, in which only four genes unrelated to cereulide synthesis on the plasmid-carrying ces gene cluster were affected by the curing of PfNC7401.
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15
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Cereulide and Deoxynivalenol Increase LC3 Protein Levels in HepG2 Liver Cells. Toxins (Basel) 2022; 14:toxins14020151. [PMID: 35202179 PMCID: PMC8880806 DOI: 10.3390/toxins14020151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2022] [Accepted: 02/14/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Food contaminants of bacterial or fungal origin frequently contaminate staple foods to various extents. Among others, the bacterial toxin cereulide (CER) and the mycotoxin deoxynivalenol (DON) co-occur in a mixed diet and are absorbed by the human body. Both toxins exert dis-tinctive mitotoxic potential. As damaged mitochondria are removed via autophagy, mitochondrial and lysosomal toxicity were assessed by applying low doses of single and combined toxins (CER 0.1-50 ng/mL; DON 0.01-5 µg/mL) to HepG2 liver cells. In addition to cytotoxicity assays, RT-qPCR was performed to investigate genes involved in lysosomal biogenesis and autophagy. CER and DON caused significant cytotoxicity on HepG2 cells after 5 and 24 h over a broad concentration range. CER, alone and in combination with DON, increased the transcription of the autophagy related genes coding for the microtubule associated protein 1A/1B light chain 3 (LC3) and sequestome 1 (SQSTM1) as well as LC3 protein expression which was determined using immunocytochemistry. DON increased LC3 protein expression without induction of gene transcription, hence it seems plausible that CER and DON act on different pathways. The results support the hypothesis that CER induces autophagy via the LC3 pathway and damaged mitochondria are therefore eliminated.
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16
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Thery M, Cousin VL, Tissieres P, Enault M, Morin L. Multi-organ failure caused by lasagnas: A case report of Bacillus cereus food poisoning. Front Pediatr 2022; 10:978250. [PMID: 36186625 PMCID: PMC9516094 DOI: 10.3389/fped.2022.978250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2022] [Accepted: 08/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
We report a Bacillus cereus, cereulide producing strain, food poisoning of two sisters. After eating a few bites of pasta cooked 3 days earlier, a 13-year-old girl developed mild symptoms. However, her 11-year-old sister suffered, 40 h after ingestion of the entire platter, a multi-organ failure including acute liver failure, rhabdomyolysis, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and acute kidney injury (AKI). She received supportive care in pediatric intensive care using mechanical ventilation, hemofiltration, and high-doses vasopressors. She was specifically treated for toxin-mediated disease using blood purification and further digestive decontamination. This report highlights the potential severity of B. cereus food poisoning but also a successful dual treatment including toxin removal and antimicrobial treatment to prevent toxin production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marin Thery
- Pediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, DMU 3 Santé de L'enfant et de l'Adolescent, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris Paris Saclay, Bicêtre Hospital, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France
| | - Vladimir L Cousin
- Pediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, DMU 3 Santé de L'enfant et de l'Adolescent, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris Paris Saclay, Bicêtre Hospital, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France.,Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Département de la Femme, de l'Enfant et de l'Adolescent, Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève, Genève, Switzerland
| | - Pierre Tissieres
- Pediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, DMU 3 Santé de L'enfant et de l'Adolescent, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris Paris Saclay, Bicêtre Hospital, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France.,Institute of Integrative Biology of the Cell, CNRS, CEA, Paris Saclay University, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Maxime Enault
- Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Pediatric Emergency Department, Armand Trousseau University Hospital, Sorbonne Université, Paris, France
| | - Luc Morin
- Pediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, DMU 3 Santé de L'enfant et de l'Adolescent, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris Paris Saclay, Bicêtre Hospital, Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France.,Institute of Integrative Biology of the Cell, CNRS, CEA, Paris Saclay University, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
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17
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Emetic toxin production of Bacillus cereus in a biofilm. Lebensm Wiss Technol 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.lwt.2021.112840] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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18
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Acute Liver Failure after Ingestion of Fried Rice Balls: A Case Series of Bacillus cereus Food Poisonings. Toxins (Basel) 2021; 14:toxins14010012. [PMID: 35050989 PMCID: PMC8779543 DOI: 10.3390/toxins14010012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2021] [Revised: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 12/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus cereus foodborne intoxications and toxicoinfections are on a rise. Usually, symptoms are self-limiting but occasionally hospitalization is necessary. Severe intoxications with the emetic Bacillus cereus toxin cereulide, which is notably resistant heat and acid during cooking, can cause acute liver failure and encephalopathy. We here present a case series of food poisonings in five immunocompetent adults after ingestion of fried rice balls, which were massively contaminated with Bacillus cereus. The patients developed a broad clinical spectrum, ranging from emesis and diarrhoea to life-threatening acute liver failure and acute tubular necrosis of the kidney in the index patient. In the left-over rice ball, we detected 8 × 106Bacillus cereus colony-forming units/g foodstuff, and cereulide in a concentration of 37 μg/g foodstuff, which is one of the highest cereulide toxin contaminations reported so far from foodborne outbreaks. This report emphasizes the potential biological hazard of contaminated rice meals that are not freshly prepared. It exemplifies the necessity of a multidisciplinary approach in cases of Bacillus cereus associated food poisonings to rapidly establish the diagnosis, to closely monitor critically ill patients, and to provide supportive measures for acute liver failure and—whenever necessary—urgent liver transplantation.
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19
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Impact of Phytochemicals on Viability and Cereulide Toxin Synthesis in Bacillus cereus Revealed by a Novel High-Throughput Method, Coupling an AlamarBlue-Based Assay with UPLC-MS/MS. Toxins (Basel) 2021; 13:toxins13090672. [PMID: 34564676 PMCID: PMC8470179 DOI: 10.3390/toxins13090672] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2021] [Revised: 09/17/2021] [Accepted: 09/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Due to its food-poisoning potential, Bacillus cereus has attracted the attention of the food industry. The cereulide-toxin-producing subgroup is of particular concern, as cereulide toxin is implicated in broadscale food-borne outbreaks and occasionally causes fatalities. The health risks associated with long-term cereulide exposure at low doses remain largely unexplored. Natural substances, such as plant-based secondary metabolites, are widely known for their effective antibacterial potential, which makes them promising as ingredients in food and also as a surrogate for antibiotics. In this work, we tested a range of structurally related phytochemicals, including benzene derivatives, monoterpenes, hydroxycinnamic acid derivatives and vitamins, for their inhibitory effects on the growth of B. cereus and the production of cereulide toxin. For this purpose, we developed a high-throughput, small-scale method which allowed us to analyze B. cereus survival and cereulide production simultaneously in one workflow by coupling an AlamarBlue-based viability assay with ultraperformance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). This combinatory method allowed us to identify not only phytochemicals with high antibacterial potential, but also ones specifically eradicating cereulide biosynthesis already at very low concentrations, such as gingerol and curcumin.
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20
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Walser V, Kranzler M, Dawid C, Ehling-Schulz M, Stark TD, Hofmann TF. Distribution of the Emetic Toxin Cereulide in Cow Milk. Toxins (Basel) 2021; 13:toxins13080528. [PMID: 34437398 PMCID: PMC8402402 DOI: 10.3390/toxins13080528] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2021] [Revised: 07/22/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is frequently associated with food-borne intoxications, and its emetic toxin cereulide causes emesis and nausea after consumption of contaminated foods. The major source for contamination is found within contaminated raw materials containing the highly chemically resistant cereulide, independent of vegetative bacteria cells. Up to date, non-existing removal strategies for cereulide evoke the question of how the toxin is distributed within a food sample, especially cow milk. Milk samples with different milk fat contents were incubated with purified cereulide, separated by centrifugation into a lipid and an aqueous phase, and cereulide was quantified in both fractions by SIDA-LC-MS/MS. By artificially increasing the milk fat content from 0.5% to 50%, the amount of cereulide recovered in the lipid phase and could be augmented from 13.3 to 78.6%. Further, the ratio of cereulide increased in the lipid phase of milk with additional plant-based lipid (sunflower oil) to 47.8%. This demonstrated a clear affinity of cereulide towards the hydrophobic, lipid phase, aligning with cereulide's naturally strong hydrophobic properties. Therefore, an intensified cereulide analysis of lipid enriched dairy products to prevent severe cereulide intoxications or cross-contamination in processed foods is suggested.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika Walser
- Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Department of Molecular Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Lise-Meitner-Str. 34, 85354 Freising, Germany; (V.W.); (C.D.); (T.F.H.)
| | - Markus Kranzler
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria; (M.K.); (M.E.-S.)
| | - Corinna Dawid
- Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Department of Molecular Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Lise-Meitner-Str. 34, 85354 Freising, Germany; (V.W.); (C.D.); (T.F.H.)
| | - Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria; (M.K.); (M.E.-S.)
| | - Timo D. Stark
- Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Department of Molecular Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Lise-Meitner-Str. 34, 85354 Freising, Germany; (V.W.); (C.D.); (T.F.H.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +49-8161-71-2911
| | - Thomas F. Hofmann
- Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Department of Molecular Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Lise-Meitner-Str. 34, 85354 Freising, Germany; (V.W.); (C.D.); (T.F.H.)
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21
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Jovanovic J, Ornelis VFM, Madder A, Rajkovic A. Bacillus cereus food intoxication and toxicoinfection. Compr Rev Food Sci Food Saf 2021; 20:3719-3761. [PMID: 34160120 DOI: 10.1111/1541-4337.12785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2020] [Revised: 05/13/2021] [Accepted: 05/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is one of the leading etiological agents of toxin-induced foodborne diseases. Its omnipresence in different environments, spore formation, and its ability to adapt to varying conditions and produce harmful toxins make this pathogen a health hazard that should not be underestimated. Food poisoning by B. cereus can manifest itself as an emetic or diarrheal syndrome. The former is caused by the release of the potent peptide toxin cereulide, whereas the latter is the result of proteinaceous enterotoxins (e.g., hemolysin BL, nonhemolytic enterotoxin, and cytotoxin K). The final harmful effect is not only toxin and strain dependent, but is also affected by the stress responses, accessory virulence factors, and phenotypic properties under extrinsic, intrinsic, and explicit food conditions and host-related environment. Infamous portrait of B. cereus as a foodborne pathogen, as well as a causative agent of nongastrointestinal infections and even nosocomial complications, has inspired vast volumes of multidisciplinary research in food and clinical domains. As a result, extensive original data became available asking for a new, both broad and deep, multifaceted look into the current state-of-the art regarding the role of B. cereus in food safety. In this review, we first provide an overview of the latest knowledge on B. cereus toxins and accessory virulence factors. Second, we describe the novel taxonomy and some of the most pertinent phenotypic characteristics of B. cereus related to food safety. We link these aspects to toxin production, overall pathogenesis, and interactions with its human host. Then we reflect on the prevalence of different toxinotypes in foods opening the scene for epidemiological aspects of B. cereus foodborne diseases and methods available to prevent food poisoning including overview of the different available methods to detect B. cereus and its toxins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jelena Jovanovic
- Department of Food Technology, Safety and Health, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Vincent F M Ornelis
- Department of Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Annemieke Madder
- Department of Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Andreja Rajkovic
- Department of Food Technology, Safety and Health, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
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22
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Kalbhenn EM, Bauer T, Stark TD, Knüpfer M, Grass G, Ehling-Schulz M. Detection and Isolation of Emetic Bacillus cereus Toxin Cereulide by Reversed Phase Chromatography. Toxins (Basel) 2021; 13:toxins13020115. [PMID: 33557428 PMCID: PMC7915282 DOI: 10.3390/toxins13020115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2020] [Revised: 01/30/2021] [Accepted: 02/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The emetic toxin cereulide is a 1.2 kDa dodecadepsipeptide produced by the food pathogen Bacillus cereus. As cereulide poses a serious health risk to humans, sensitive and specific detection, as well as toxin purification and quantification, methods are of utmost importance. Recently, a stable isotope dilution assay tandem mass spectrometry (SIDA–MS/MS)-based method has been described, and an method for the quantitation of cereulide in foods was established by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). However, although this SIDA–MS/MS method is highly accurate, the sophisticated high-end MS equipment required for such measurements limits the method’s suitability for microbiological and molecular research. Thus, we aimed to develop a method for cereulide toxin detection and isolation using equipment commonly available in microbiological and biochemical research laboratories. Reproducible detection and relative quantification of cereulide was achieved, employing reversed phase chromatography (RPC). Chromatographic signals were cross validated by ultraperformance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (UPLC–MS/MS). The specificity of the RPC method was tested using a test panel of strains that included non-emetic representatives of the B. cereus group, emetic B. cereus strains, and cereulide-deficient isogenic mutants. In summary, the new method represents a robust, economical, and easily accessible research tool that complements existing diagnostics for the detection and quantification of cereulide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Maria Kalbhenn
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, 1210 Vienna, Austria; (E.M.K.); (T.B.)
| | - Tobias Bauer
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, 1210 Vienna, Austria; (E.M.K.); (T.B.)
| | - Timo D. Stark
- Chair of Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Technical University of Munich, Lise-Meitner-Straße 34, 85354 Freising, Germany;
| | - Mandy Knüpfer
- Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, Neuherbergstraße 11, 80937 Munich, Germany; (M.K.); (G.G.)
| | - Gregor Grass
- Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, Neuherbergstraße 11, 80937 Munich, Germany; (M.K.); (G.G.)
| | - Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, 1210 Vienna, Austria; (E.M.K.); (T.B.)
- Correspondence:
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23
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The Food Poisoning Toxins of Bacillus cereus. Toxins (Basel) 2021; 13:toxins13020098. [PMID: 33525722 PMCID: PMC7911051 DOI: 10.3390/toxins13020098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 113] [Impact Index Per Article: 37.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2020] [Revised: 01/14/2021] [Accepted: 01/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is a ubiquitous soil bacterium responsible for two types of food-associated gastrointestinal diseases. While the emetic type, a food intoxication, manifests in nausea and vomiting, food infections with enteropathogenic strains cause diarrhea and abdominal pain. Causative toxins are the cyclic dodecadepsipeptide cereulide, and the proteinaceous enterotoxins hemolysin BL (Hbl), nonhemolytic enterotoxin (Nhe) and cytotoxin K (CytK), respectively. This review covers the current knowledge on distribution and genetic organization of the toxin genes, as well as mechanisms of enterotoxin gene regulation and toxin secretion. In this context, the exceptionally high variability of toxin production between single strains is highlighted. In addition, the mode of action of the pore-forming enterotoxins and their effect on target cells is described in detail. The main focus of this review are the two tripartite enterotoxin complexes Hbl and Nhe, but the latest findings on cereulide and CytK are also presented, as well as methods for toxin detection, and the contribution of further putative virulence factors to the diarrheal disease.
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24
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Colaco CMG, Basile K, Draper J, Ferguson PE. Fulminant Bacillus cereus food poisoning with fatal multi-organ failure. BMJ Case Rep 2021; 14:14/1/e238716. [PMID: 33462030 PMCID: PMC7813301 DOI: 10.1136/bcr-2020-238716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
This case represents a rare fulminant course of fried-rice associated food poisoning in an immunocompetent person due to pre-formed exotoxin produced by Bacillus cereus, with severe manifestations of sepsis, including multi-organ (hepatic, renal, cardiac, respiratory and neurological) failure, shock, metabolic acidosis, rhabdomyolysis and coagulopathy. Despite maximal supportive measures (continuous renal replacement therapy, plasmapheresis, N-acetylcysteine infusion and blood products, and broad-spectrum antimicrobials) and input from a multidisciplinary team (consisting of infectious diseases, intensive care, gastroenterology, surgery, toxicology, immunology and haematology), mortality resulted. This case is the first to use whole genome sequencing techniques to confirm the toxigenic potential of B. cereus It has important implications for food preparation and storage, particularly given its occurrence in home isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clinton M G Colaco
- Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology Laboratory Services, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, Sydney, Australia,Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Kerri Basile
- Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology Laboratory Services, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, Sydney, Australia,Institute of Clinical Pathology and Medical Research, NSW Health Pathology, Westmead, Sydney, Australia
| | - Jenny Draper
- Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology Laboratory Services, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, Sydney, Australia,Institute of Clinical Pathology and Medical Research, NSW Health Pathology, Westmead, Sydney, Australia
| | - Patricia E Ferguson
- Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology Laboratory Services, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, Sydney, Australia
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25
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Jessberger N, Dietrich R, Granum PE, Märtlbauer E. The Bacillus cereus Food Infection as Multifactorial Process. Toxins (Basel) 2020; 12:E701. [PMID: 33167492 PMCID: PMC7694497 DOI: 10.3390/toxins12110701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2020] [Revised: 10/30/2020] [Accepted: 11/02/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The ubiquitous soil bacterium Bacillus cereus presents major challenges to food safety. It is responsible for two types of food poisoning, the emetic form due to food intoxication and the diarrheal form emerging from food infections with enteropathogenic strains, also known as toxico-infections, which are the subject of this review. The diarrheal type of food poisoning emerges after production of enterotoxins by viable bacteria in the human intestine. Basically, the manifestation of the disease is, however, the result of a multifactorial process, including B. cereus prevalence and survival in different foods, survival of the stomach passage, spore germination, motility, adhesion, and finally enterotoxin production in the intestine. Moreover, all of these processes are influenced by the consumed foodstuffs as well as the intestinal microbiota which have, therefore, to be considered for a reliable prediction of the hazardous potential of contaminated foods. Current knowledge regarding these single aspects is summarized in this review aiming for risk-oriented diagnostics for enteropathogenic B. cereus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nadja Jessberger
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Schönleutnerstr. 8, 85764 Oberschleißheim, Germany; (R.D.); (E.M.)
| | - Richard Dietrich
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Schönleutnerstr. 8, 85764 Oberschleißheim, Germany; (R.D.); (E.M.)
| | - Per Einar Granum
- Department of Food Safety and Infection Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, P.O. Box 5003 NMBU, 1432 Ås, Norway;
| | - Erwin Märtlbauer
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Schönleutnerstr. 8, 85764 Oberschleißheim, Germany; (R.D.); (E.M.)
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26
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Rasooly R, Do P, Hernlem B. Quantitative bioluminescence assay for measuring Bacillus cereus nonhemolytic enterotoxin complex. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0238153. [PMID: 32998160 PMCID: PMC7527251 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0238153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is a foodborne pathogen causing emesis and diarrhea in those affected. It is assumed that the non-hemolytic enterotoxin (Nhe) plays a key role in B. cereus induced diarrhea. The ability to trace Nhe activity is important for food safety. While assays such as PCR and ELISA exist to detect Nhe, those methods cannot differentiate between active and inactive forms of Nhe. The existing rabbit ileal loop bioassay used to detect Nhe activity is ethically disfavored because it uses live experimental animals. Here we present a custom built low-cost CCD based luminometer and applied it in conjunction with a cell-based assay using Vero cells transduced to express the luciferase enzyme. The activity of Nhe was measured as its ability to inhibit synthesis of luciferase as quantified by reduction of light emission by the luciferase reaction. Emitted light intensity was observed to be inversely proportional to Nhe concentration over a range of 7 ng/ml to 125 ng/ml, with a limit of detection of 7 ng/ml Nhe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Reuven Rasooly
- Western Regional Research Center, Foodborne Toxin Detection & Prevention Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Albany, CA, United States of America
| | - Paula Do
- Western Regional Research Center, Foodborne Toxin Detection & Prevention Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Albany, CA, United States of America
| | - Bradley Hernlem
- Western Regional Research Center, Foodborne Toxin Detection & Prevention Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Albany, CA, United States of America
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Beyond Toxin Transport: Novel Role of ABC Transporter for Enzymatic Machinery of Cereulide NRPS Assembly Line. mBio 2020; 11:mBio.01577-20. [PMID: 32994334 PMCID: PMC7527721 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.01577-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
This study revealed a novel, potentially conserved mechanism involved in the biosynthesis of microbial natural products, exemplified by the mitochondrial active depsipeptide cereulide. Similar to other bioactive substances, such as the last-resort antibiotics vancomycin and daptomycin, the antitumor drug cryptophycin or the cholesterol-lowering agent lovastatin, cereulide is synthesized nonribosomally by multienzyme machinery, requiring the concerted actions of multiple proteins to ensure correct product assembly. Given the importance of microbial secondary metabolites in human and veterinary medicine, it is critical to understand how these processes are orchestrated within the host cells. By revealing that tethering of a biosynthetic enzyme to the cell membrane by an ABC transporter is essential for nonribosomal peptide production, our study provides novel insights into synthesis of microbial secondary metabolites, which could contribute to isolation of novel compounds from cryptic secondary metabolite clusters or improve the yield of produced pharmaceuticals. Nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs) and polyketide synthetases (PKSs) play a pivotal role in the production of bioactive natural products, such as antibiotics and cytotoxins. Despite biomedical and pharmaceutical importance, the molecular mechanisms and architectures of these multimodular enzyme complexes are not fully understood. Here, we report on an ABC transporter that forms a vital part of the nonribosomal peptide biosynthetic machinery. Emetic Bacillus cereus produces the highly potent, mitochondrial active nonribosomal depsipeptide cereulide, synthesized by the NRPS Ces. The ces gene locus includes, next to the structural cesAB genes, a putative ABC transporter, designated cesCD. Our study demonstrates that tethering of CesAB synthetase to the cell membrane by CesCD is critical for peptide assembly. In vivo studies revealed that CesAB colocalizes with CesCD on the cell membrane, suggesting direct involvement of this ABC transporter in the biosynthesis of a nonribosomal peptide. Mutation of cesCD, disrupting the assembly of the CesCD complex, resulted in decreased interaction with CesAB and, as a consequence, negatively affected cereulide biosynthesis. Specific domains within CesAB synthetase interacting with CesC were identified. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the structurally similar BerAB transporter from Bacillus thuringiensis complements CesCD function in cereulide biosynthesis, suggesting that the direct involvement of ABC transporter in secondary metabolite biosynthesis could be a widespread mechanism. In summary, our study revealed a novel, noncanonical function for ABC transporter, which is essential for megaenzyme functionality of NRPS. The new insights into natural product biosynthesis gained may facilitate the discovery of new metabolites with bioactive potential.
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Ramarao N, Tran SL, Marin M, Vidic J. Advanced Methods for Detection of Bacillus cereus and Its Pathogenic Factors. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2020; 20:E2667. [PMID: 32392794 PMCID: PMC7273213 DOI: 10.3390/s20092667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2020] [Revised: 05/02/2020] [Accepted: 05/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is an opportunistic foodborne pathogen causing food intoxication and infectious diseases. Different toxins and pathogenic factors are responsible for diarrheal syndrome, like nonhemolytic enterotoxin Nhe, hemolytic enterotoxin Hbl, enterotoxin FM and cytotoxin K, while emetic syndrome is caused by the depsipeptide cereulide toxin. The traditional method of B. cereus detection is based on the bacterial culturing onto selective agars and cells enumeration. In addition, molecular and chemical methods are proposed for toxin gene profiling, toxin quantification and strain screening for defined virulence factors. Finally, some advanced biosensors such as phage-based, cell-based, immunosensors and DNA biosensors have been elaborated to enable affordable, sensitive, user-friendly and rapid detection of specific B. cereus strains. This review intends to both illustrate the state of the B. cereus diagnostic field and to highlight additional research that is still at the development level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nalini Ramarao
- INRAE, AgroParisTech, Micalis Institute, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France; (S.-L.T.); (M.M.)
| | | | | | - Jasmina Vidic
- INRAE, AgroParisTech, Micalis Institute, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France; (S.-L.T.); (M.M.)
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Rouzeau-Szynalski K, Stollewerk K, Messelhäusser U, Ehling-Schulz M. Why be serious about emetic Bacillus cereus: Cereulide production and industrial challenges. Food Microbiol 2019; 85:103279. [PMID: 31500702 DOI: 10.1016/j.fm.2019.103279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2019] [Revised: 07/18/2019] [Accepted: 07/25/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Cereulide, a potent toxin produced by Bacillus cereus, is a small, highly heat- and acid-resistant depsipeptide toxin, which confronts food industry with several challenges. Due to the ubiquitous presence of B. cereus in the environment, this opportunistic pathogen can enter food production and processing at almost any stage. Although the bacteria itself might be removed during food processing, the cereulide toxin will most likely not be destroyed or inactivated by these processes. Because of the high toxicity of cereulide and the high incidence rates often observed in connection with foodborne outbreaks, the understanding of the mechanisms of toxin production as well as accurate data on contamination sources and factors promoting toxin formation are urgently needed to prevent contamination and toxin production in food production processes. Over the last decade, considerable progress had been made on the understanding of cereulide toxin biosynthesis in emetic B. cereus, but an overview of current knowledge on this toxin with regards to food industry perspective is lacking. Thus, we aim in this work to summarize data available on extrinsic parameters acting on cereulide toxin synthesis in emetic B. cereus and to discuss the food industry specific challenges related to this toxin. Furthermore, we emphasize how identification of the cardinals in food production processes can lead to novel effective strategies for prevention of toxin formation in the food processing chain and could contribute to the improvement of existing HACCP studies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Katharina Stollewerk
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Austria
| | - Ute Messelhäusser
- Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority, Veterinaerstr. 2, 85764, Oberschleissheim, Germany
| | - Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Austria.
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Ehling-Schulz M, Lereclus D, Koehler TM. The Bacillus cereus Group: Bacillus Species with Pathogenic Potential. Microbiol Spectr 2019; 7:10.1128/microbiolspec.gpp3-0032-2018. [PMID: 31111815 PMCID: PMC6530592 DOI: 10.1128/microbiolspec.gpp3-0032-2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 235] [Impact Index Per Article: 47.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The Bacillus cereus group includes several Bacillus species with closely related phylogeny. The most well-studied members of the group, B. anthracis, B. cereus, and B. thuringiensis, are known for their pathogenic potential. Here, we present the historical rationale for speciation and discuss shared and unique features of these bacteria. Aspects of cell morphology and physiology, and genome sequence similarity and gene synteny support close evolutionary relationships for these three species. For many strains, distinct differences in virulence factor synthesis provide facile means for species assignment. B. anthracis is the causative agent of anthrax. Some B. cereus strains are commonly recognized as food poisoning agents, but strains can also cause localized wound and eye infections as well as systemic disease. Certain B. thuringiensis strains are entomopathogens and have been commercialized for use as biopesticides, while some strains have been reported to cause infection in immunocompromised individuals. In this article we compare and contrast B. anthracis, B. cereus, and B. thuringiensis, including ecology, cell structure and development, virulence attributes, gene regulation and genetic exchange systems, and experimental models of disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathology, University of Veterinary Medicine, 1210 Vienna, Austria
| | - Didier Lereclus
- Micalis Institute, INRA, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Theresa M Koehler
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center - Houston, Houston, TX 77030
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Ulrich S, Gottschalk C, Dietrich R, Märtlbauer E, Gareis M. Identification of cereulide producing Bacillus cereus by MALDI-TOF MS. Food Microbiol 2019; 82:75-81. [PMID: 31027822 DOI: 10.1016/j.fm.2019.01.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2018] [Revised: 01/11/2019] [Accepted: 01/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
The Bacillus (B.) cereus group consists of nine recognized species which are present worldwide. B. cereus play an important role in food-borne diseases by producing different toxins. Yet, only a small percentage of B. cereus strains are able to produce the heat stable cereulide, the causative agent of emetic food poisoning. To minimize the entry of emetic B. cereus into the food chain, food business operators are dependent on efficient and reliable methods enabling the differentiation between emetic and non-emetic strains. Currently, only time-consuming cell bioassays, molecular methods and tandem mass spectrometry are available for this purpose. Thus, the aim of the present study was to establish a fast and reliable method for the differentiation between emetic/non-emetic strains by MALDI-TOF MS. Selected strains/isolates of the B. cereus group as well as other Bacillus spp. (total n = 121) were cultured on sheep blood agar for 48 h before analysis. Subsequently, the cultures were directly analyzed by MALDI-TOF MS without prior extraction steps. The samples were measured in the mass range of m/z 800-1800 Da. Using ClinProTools 3.0 statistical software and Flex analysis software (Bruker Daltonics GmbH, Bremen, Germany), a differentiation between emetic/non-emetic isolates was possible with a rate of correct identification of 99.1% by means of the evaluation of two specific biomarkers (m/z 1171 and 1187 Da).
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Ulrich
- Food Safety, Veterinary Faculty, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Schoenleutnerstr. 8, 85764, Oberschleissheim, Germany.
| | - Christoph Gottschalk
- Food Safety, Veterinary Faculty, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Schoenleutnerstr. 8, 85764, Oberschleissheim, Germany
| | - Richard Dietrich
- Hygiene and Technology of Milk, Veterinary Faculty, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Schoenleutnerstr. 8, 85764, Oberschleissheim, Germany
| | - Erwin Märtlbauer
- Hygiene and Technology of Milk, Veterinary Faculty, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Schoenleutnerstr. 8, 85764, Oberschleissheim, Germany
| | - Manfred Gareis
- Food Safety, Veterinary Faculty, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Schoenleutnerstr. 8, 85764, Oberschleissheim, Germany
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Bauer T, Sipos W, Stark TD, Käser T, Knecht C, Brunthaler R, Saalmüller A, Hofmann T, Ehling-Schulz M. First Insights Into Within Host Translocation of the Bacillus cereus Toxin Cereulide Using a Porcine Model. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:2652. [PMID: 30464760 PMCID: PMC6234764 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.02652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2018] [Accepted: 10/17/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is a gram-positive pathogen mainly known to evoke two types of foodborne poisonings. The diarrheal syndrome is caused by enterotoxins produced during growth in the intestine. In contrast, the emetic type is caused by the dodecadepsipeptide cereulide pre-formed in food. Usually, both diseases are self-limiting but occasionally more severe forms, including fatal ones, are reported. Since the mechanisms of cereulide toxin uptake and translocation within the body as well as the mechanism of its toxic action are still unknown, we used a porcine model to investigate the uptake, routes of excretion and distribution of cereulide within the host. Pigs were orally challenged with cereulide using single doses of 10-150 μg cereulide kg-1 body weight to study acute effects or using daily doses of 10 μg cereulide kg-1 body weight administered for 7 days to investigate effects of longtime, chronic exposure. Our study showed that part of cereulide ingested with food is rapidly excreted with feces while part of the cereulide toxin is absorbed, passes through membranes and is distributed within the body. Results from the chronic trial indicate bioaccumulation of cereulide in certain tissues and organs, such as kidney, liver, muscles and fat tissues. Beside its detection in various tissues and organs, our study also demonstrated that cereulide is able to cross the blood-brain-barrier, which may partially explain the cerebral effects reported from human intoxication cases. The neurobehavioral symptoms, such as seizures and lethargy, observed in our porcine model resemble those reported from human food borne intoxications. The rapid onset of these symptoms indicates direct effects of cereulide on the central nervous system (CNS), which warrant further research. The porcine model presented here might be useful to study the specific neurobiological effect in detail. Furthermore, our study revealed that typical diagnostic specimens used in human medicine, such as blood samples and urine, are not suitable for diagnostics of food borne cereulide intoxications. Instead, screening of fecal samples by SIDA-LC-MS may represent a simple and non-invasive method for detection of cereulide intoxications in clinical settings as well as in foodborne outbreak situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tobias Bauer
- Department of Pathobiology, Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Wolfgang Sipos
- University Clinic for Swine, Department for Farm Animals and Veterinary Public Health, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Timo D Stark
- Chair of Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Technische Universität München, Freising, Germany
| | - Tobias Käser
- Department of Pathobiology, Institute of Immunology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University (NCSU), Raleigh, NC, United States
| | - Christian Knecht
- University Clinic for Swine, Department for Farm Animals and Veterinary Public Health, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Rene Brunthaler
- Department of Pathobiology, Institute of Pathology and Forensic Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Armin Saalmüller
- Department of Pathobiology, Institute of Immunology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Thomas Hofmann
- Chair of Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Technische Universität München, Freising, Germany
| | - Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Department of Pathobiology, Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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Galié S, García-Gutiérrez C, Miguélez EM, Villar CJ, Lombó F. Biofilms in the Food Industry: Health Aspects and Control Methods. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:898. [PMID: 29867809 PMCID: PMC5949339 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.00898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 432] [Impact Index Per Article: 72.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2017] [Accepted: 04/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Diverse microorganisms are able to grow on food matrixes and along food industry infrastructures. This growth may give rise to biofilms. This review summarizes, on the one hand, the current knowledge regarding the main bacterial species responsible for initial colonization, maturation and dispersal of food industry biofilms, as well as their associated health issues in dairy products, ready-to-eat foods and other food matrixes. These human pathogens include Bacillus cereus (which secretes toxins that can cause diarrhea and vomiting symptoms), Escherichia coli (which may include enterotoxigenic and even enterohemorrhagic strains), Listeria monocytogenes (a ubiquitous species in soil and water that can lead to abortion in pregnant women and other serious complications in children and the elderly), Salmonella enterica (which, when contaminating a food pipeline biofilm, may induce massive outbreaks and even death in children and elderly), and Staphylococcus aureus (known for its numerous enteric toxins). On the other hand, this review describes the currently available biofilm prevention and disruption methods in food factories, including steel surface modifications (such as nanoparticles with different metal oxides, nanocomposites, antimicrobial polymers, hydrogels or liposomes), cell-signaling inhibition strategies (such as lactic and citric acids), chemical treatments (such as ozone, quaternary ammonium compounds, NaOCl and other sanitizers), enzymatic disruption strategies (such as cellulases, proteases, glycosidases and DNAses), non-thermal plasma treatments, the use of bacteriophages (such as P100), bacteriocins (such us nisin), biosurfactants (such as lichenysin or surfactin) and plant essential oils (such as citral- or carvacrol-containing oils).
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Affiliation(s)
- Serena Galié
- Research Group BIONUC (Biotechnology of Nutraceuticals and Bioactive Compounds), Departamento de Biología Funcional, Área de Microbiología, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto Universitario de Oncología del Principado de Asturias (IUOPA), Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA), Oviedo, Spain
| | - Coral García-Gutiérrez
- Research Group BIONUC (Biotechnology of Nutraceuticals and Bioactive Compounds), Departamento de Biología Funcional, Área de Microbiología, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto Universitario de Oncología del Principado de Asturias (IUOPA), Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA), Oviedo, Spain
| | - Elisa M. Miguélez
- Research Group BIONUC (Biotechnology of Nutraceuticals and Bioactive Compounds), Departamento de Biología Funcional, Área de Microbiología, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto Universitario de Oncología del Principado de Asturias (IUOPA), Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA), Oviedo, Spain
| | - Claudio J. Villar
- Research Group BIONUC (Biotechnology of Nutraceuticals and Bioactive Compounds), Departamento de Biología Funcional, Área de Microbiología, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto Universitario de Oncología del Principado de Asturias (IUOPA), Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA), Oviedo, Spain
| | - Felipe Lombó
- Research Group BIONUC (Biotechnology of Nutraceuticals and Bioactive Compounds), Departamento de Biología Funcional, Área de Microbiología, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto Universitario de Oncología del Principado de Asturias (IUOPA), Oviedo, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA), Oviedo, Spain
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Juneja VK, Friedman M, Mohr TB, Silverman M, Mukhopadhyay S. Control of Bacillus cereus
spore germination and outgrowth in cooked rice during chilling by nonorganic and organic apple, orange, and potato peel powders. J FOOD PROCESS PRES 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/jfpp.13558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Vijay K. Juneja
- Eastern Regional Research Center, U. S. Department of Agriculture; Agricultural Research Service, 600 East Mermaid Lane; Wyndmoor Pennsylvania 19039
| | - Mendel Friedman
- Healthy Processed Foods Research, Western Regional Research Center, U. S. Department of Agriculture; Agricultural Research Service; Albany California 94710
| | - Tim B. Mohr
- USDA-FSIS-Office of Public Health Science/Science Staff, 530 Center Street, NE, Suite 401; Salem Oregon 97301
| | - Meryl Silverman
- USDA-FSIS-Office of Policy and Program Development/Risk, Innovations, and Management Staff; Washington DC
| | - Sudarsan Mukhopadhyay
- Eastern Regional Research Center, U. S. Department of Agriculture; Agricultural Research Service, 600 East Mermaid Lane; Wyndmoor Pennsylvania 19039
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Risks for public health related to the presence of Bacillus cereus and other Bacillus spp. including Bacillus thuringiensis in foodstuffs. EFSA J 2016. [DOI: 10.2903/j.efsa.2016.4524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
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The Endospore-Forming Pathogen Bacillus cereus Exploits a Small Colony Variant-Based Diversification Strategy in Response to Aminoglycoside Exposure. mBio 2015; 6:e01172-15. [PMID: 26646008 PMCID: PMC4676280 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.01172-15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is among the microorganisms most often isolated from cases of food spoilage and causes gastrointestinal diseases as well as nongastrointestinal infections elicited by the emetic toxin cereulide, enterotoxins, and a panel of tissue-destructive virulence factors. This opportunistic pathogen is increasingly associated with rapidly fatal clinical infections especially linked to neonates and immunocompromised individuals. Fatality results from either the misdiagnosis of B. cereus as a contaminant of the clinical specimen or from failure of antibiotic therapy. Here we report for the first time that exposure to aminoglycoside antibiotics induces a phenotype switching of emetic B. cereus subpopulations to a slow-growing small colony variant (SCV) state. Along with altered antibiotic resistance, SCVs showed distinct phenotypic and metabolic properties, bearing the risk of antibiotic treatment failure and of clinical misdiagnosis by standard identification tests used in routine diagnostic. The SCV subpopulation is characterized by enhanced production of the toxin cereulide, but it does not secrete tissue-destructive and immune system-affecting enzymes such as sphingomyelinase and phospholipase. SCVs showed significantly prolonged persistence and decreased virulence in the Galleria mellonella model for bacterial infections, indicating diversification concerning their ecological lifestyle. Importantly, diversification into coexisting wild-type and SCV subpopulations also emerged during amikacin pressure during in vivo infection experiments. This study shows for the first time that pathogenic spore-forming B. cereus strains are able to switch to a so far unreported slow-growing lifestyle, which differs substantially in terms of developmental, phenotypic, metabolic, and virulence traits from the wild-type populations. This underpins the necessity of molecular-based differential diagnostics and a well-chosen therapeutic treatment strategy in clinical environments to combat B. cereus in a tailored manner. The reported induction of SCV in an endospore-forming human pathogen requires further research to broaden our understanding of a yet unexplored antibiotic resistance mechanism in sporulating bacteria. Our work also raises a general question about the ecological meaning of SCV subpopulation emergence and importance of SCV in sporeformer populations as an alternative route, next to sporulation, to cope with stresses encountered in natural niches, such as soil or host interfaces.
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Lücking G, Frenzel E, Rütschle A, Marxen S, Stark TD, Hofmann T, Scherer S, Ehling-Schulz M. Ces locus embedded proteins control the non-ribosomal synthesis of the cereulide toxin in emetic Bacillus cereus on multiple levels. Front Microbiol 2015; 6:1101. [PMID: 26528255 PMCID: PMC4602138 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2015.01101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2015] [Accepted: 09/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The emetic toxin cereulide produced by Bacillus cereus is synthesized by the modular enzyme complex Ces that is encoded on a pXO1-like megaplasmid. To decipher the role of the genes adjacent to the structural genes cesA/cesB, coding for the non-ribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS), gene inactivation- and overexpression mutants of the emetic strain F4810/72 were constructed and their impact on cereulide biosynthesis was assessed. The hydrolase CesH turned out to be a part of the complex regulatory network controlling cereulide synthesis on a transcriptional level, while the ABC transporter CesCD was found to be essential for post-translational control of cereulide synthesis. Using a gene inactivation approach, we show that the NRPS activating function of the phosphopantetheinyl transferase (PPtase) embedded in the ces locus was complemented by a chromosomally encoded Sfp-like PPtase, representing an interesting example for the functional interaction between a plasmid encoded NRPS and a chromosomally encoded activation enzyme. In summary, our results highlight the complexity of cereulide biosynthesis and reveal multiple levels of toxin formation control. ces operon internal genes were shown to play a pivotal role by acting at different levels of toxin production, thus complementing the action of the chromosomal key transcriptional regulators AbrB and CodY.
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Affiliation(s)
- Genia Lücking
- Department of Microbiology, Central Institute for Food and Nutrition Research (Zentralinstitut für Ernährungs- und Lebensmittelforschung), Technische Universität München Freising, Germany
| | - Elrike Frenzel
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna Vienna, Austria
| | - Andrea Rütschle
- Department of Microbiology, Central Institute for Food and Nutrition Research (Zentralinstitut für Ernährungs- und Lebensmittelforschung), Technische Universität München Freising, Germany
| | - Sandra Marxen
- Chair of Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Technische Universität München Freising, Germany
| | - Timo D Stark
- Chair of Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Technische Universität München Freising, Germany
| | - Thomas Hofmann
- Chair of Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science, Technische Universität München Freising, Germany
| | - Siegfried Scherer
- Department of Microbiology, Central Institute for Food and Nutrition Research (Zentralinstitut für Ernährungs- und Lebensmittelforschung), Technische Universität München Freising, Germany ; Lehrstuhl für Mikrobielle Ökologie, Wissenschaftszentrum Weihenstephan, Technische Universität München Freising, Germany
| | - Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna Vienna, Austria
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Marxen S, Stark TD, Rütschle A, Lücking G, Frenzel E, Scherer S, Ehling-Schulz M, Hofmann T. Multiparametric Quantitation of the Bacillus cereus Toxins Cereulide and Isocereulides A-G in Foods. JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY 2015; 63:8307-8313. [PMID: 26352912 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.5b03705] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Consumption of food products contaminated with cereulide (1), a toxin produced by Bacillus cereus, might cause intoxications with symptoms reported to range from indigestion pain and emesis to death. Recently, a series of structural variants, coined isocereulides A-G (2-8), were identified for the first time to be produced along with cereulide (1). The observation that isocereulide A (2) shows an ∼ 8-fold increased cytotoxicity when compared to 1 urges the development of analytical tools enabling an accurate quantitation of these toxins. Therefore, a rapid, sensitive, and robust stable isotope dilution assay (SIDA) was developed for the combined quantitation of 1-8 by means of UPLC-MS/MS. On average, trueness and precision of the method were 112.5 ± 1.8% RSD, repeatability and reproducibility were 2 and 4% for cereulide and isocereulides A-G, and the LOD and LOQ of 0.1 and 0.5 ng/g, respectively, demonstrated a high sensitivity for the developed SIDA method. Application of this method to food samples revealed elevated levels of 1-8 in two suspicious noodle samples, for example, ranging from 0.59 (7) to 189.08 ng/g (1) in sample 1 and from 5.77 (7) to 6198.17 ng/g (1) in sample 2, whereas the analysis of 25 randomly selected food samples, which have not been the subject to any complaints, did not contain detectable amounts of any of these toxins. As a consequence, this SIDA method could add an important contribution to the knowledge-based risk assessment of B. cereus toxins in foods.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Elrike Frenzel
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna , 1210 Vienna, Austria
| | - Siegfried Scherer
- Chair of Microbial Ecology, Department of Biosciences, WZW, Technische Universität München , 85350 Freising, Germany
| | - Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna , 1210 Vienna, Austria
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Ehling-Schulz M, Frenzel E, Gohar M. Food-bacteria interplay: pathometabolism of emetic Bacillus cereus. Front Microbiol 2015; 6:704. [PMID: 26236290 PMCID: PMC4500953 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2015.00704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2015] [Accepted: 06/26/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is a Gram-positive endospore forming bacterium known for its wide spectrum of phenotypic traits, enabling it to occupy diverse ecological niches. Although the population structure of B. cereus is highly dynamic and rather panmictic, production of the emetic B. cereus toxin cereulide is restricted to strains with specific genotypic traits, associated with distinct environmental habitats. Cereulide is an ionophoric dodecadepsipeptide that is produced non-ribosomally by an enzyme complex with an unusual modular structure, named cereulide synthetase (Ces non-ribosomal peptide synthetase). The ces gene locus is encoded on a mega virulence plasmid related to the B. anthracis toxin plasmid pXO1. Cereulide, a highly thermo- and pH- resistant molecule, is preformed in food, evokes vomiting a few hours after ingestion, and was shown to be the direct cause of gastroenteritis symptoms; occasionally it is implicated in severe clinical manifestations including acute liver failures. Control of toxin gene expression in emetic B. cereus involves central transcriptional regulators, such as CodY and AbrB, thereby inextricably linking toxin gene expression to life cycle phases and specific conditions, such as the nutrient supply encountered in food matrices. While in recent years considerable progress has been made in the molecular and biochemical characterization of cereulide toxin synthesis, far less is known about the embedment of toxin synthesis in the life cycle of B. cereus. Information about signals acting on toxin production in the food environment is lacking. We summarize the data available on the complex regulatory network controlling cereulide toxin synthesis, discuss the role of intrinsic and extrinsic factors acting on toxin biosynthesis in emetic B. cereus and stress how unraveling these processes can lead to the development of novel effective strategies to prevent toxin synthesis in the food production and processing chain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monika Ehling-Schulz
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine ViennaVienna, Austria
| | - Elrike Frenzel
- Functional Microbiology, Institute of Microbiology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine ViennaVienna, Austria
| | - Michel Gohar
- INRA, UMR1319 Micalis, AgroParistech – Domaine de Vilvert, Génétique Microbienne et EnvironnementJouy-en-Josas, France
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