Microbial strain typing for real-time quality control and source tracking using FT-IR Spectroscopy

The microbiome of every food product is incredibly diverse and can include everything from innocuous background flora to foodborne pathogens. Starter cultures, spoilage organisms, and probiotics are also commonly found in foods. Routine isolation and identification of the various microorganisms that are present in a food product (and its associated production environment) can be very helpful to inform the manufacturer of what they are dealing with from a pathogen or spoilage organism contamination standpoint. However, basic identification to the species level generally provides the manufacturer with little more than the names of the microorganisms that are isolated. Because multiple strains of a particular species can be present in a food product and its production environment, one cannot automatically assume that two isolates are identical clones of one another just because they belong to the same species. Consequently, one also cannot assume that two isolates of the same species are coming from the same source in the production process just because they belong to the same species. This is where the Bruker IR Biotyper®, which is able to subtype organisms beyond the species level, plays a critical role in tracking the relatedness and sources of foodborne microorganisms. Our laboratory at FSNS has implemented the Bruker IR Biotyper technology in several different capacities. One way we have used it is to help our customers track strains of Listeria monocytogenes (and other Listeria species) that are present in a food production environment. Another way we have implemented it is to help our customers determine if massive Escherichia coli O157:H7 contamination events in their beef slaughter facilities (a.k.a. “event days”) are due to a single point source of contamination or multiple smaller contamination sources. Yet another way we have put the Bruker IR Biotyper into practice is to track a particular spoilage organism throughout the production process from raw materials, to work-in-process items, to finished goods. Our primary goal with this presentation is to inform you of how FSNS has used this technology so far with several real-life case studies and their findings. In addition, we aim to help you see the potential that we see in implementing the Bruker IR Biotyper more broadly across the food microbiology testing industry for tracking microorganisms beyond the species level.

 

Learning Objectives

 

*Not for use in clinical diagnostic procedures. Please contact your local representative for availability in your country.