Natural atypical Listeria innocua strains with Listeria monocytogenes pathogenicity island 1 genes.

Identification of bona fide Listeria isolates into the six species of the genus normally requires only a few tests. Aberrant isolates do occur, but even then only one or two extra confirmatory tests are generally needed for identification to species level. We have discovered a hemolytic-positive, rhamnose and xylose fermentation-negative Listeria strain with surprising recalcitrance to identification to the species level due to contradictory results in standard confirmatory tests. The issue had to be resolved by using total DNA-DNA hybridization testing and then confirmed by further specific PCR-based tests including a Listeria microarray assay. The results show that this isolate is indeed a novel one. Its discovery provides the first fully documented instance of a hemolytic Listeria innocua strain. This species, by definition, is typically nonhemolytic. The L. innocua isolate contains all the members of the PrfA-regulated virulence gene cluster (Listeria pathogenicity island 1) of L. monocytogenes. It is avirulent in the mouse pathogenicity test. Avirulence is likely at least partly due to the absence of the L. monocytogenes-specific allele of iap, as well as the absence of inlA, inlB, inlC, and daaA. At least two of the virulence cluster genes, hly and plcA, which encode the L. monocytogenes hemolysin (listeriolysin O) and inositol-specific phospholipase C, respectively, are phenotypically expressed in this L. innocua strain. The detection by PCR assays of specific L. innocua genes (lin0198, lin0372, lin0419, lin0558, lin1068, lin1073, lin1074, lin2454, and lin2693) and noncoding intergenic regions (lin0454-lin0455 and nadA-lin2134) in the strain is consistent with its L. innocua DNA-DNA hybridization identity. Additional distinctly different hemolytic L. innocua strains were also studied.

Subchronic toxicity of fish oil concentrates in male and female rats.

There are an overwhelming number of reports indicating the beneficial effects of fish oil supplements in human and animal nutrition. The purpose of this study, second in a series, was to evaluate the effects, particularly those that may be harmful, of high-dose, long-term consumption of fish oil concentrates (FOC) using male and female rats. One hundred and twenty male and 120 female rats were gavaged daily with oils and oil mixtures in a volume equal to 0.5% body weight (5 mL/kg/d) for 13 weeks. The administered oils were corn oil, pure menhaden oil (MO), pure MaxEPA fish oil or different mixtures of corn oil with MO. The stability and the homogeneity of the dosing solutions were tested under study conditions. The animals received isocaloric and isonitrogenous diets throughout. Food and pure water were supplied ad libitum. At the end of the in-life phase of the study, the animals were anaesthetized with CO2 and humanely killed by exsanguination. Blood and other tissues were prepared for various clinical, histopathological and laboratory tests. Some beneficial effects of FOC, such as reduction in total serum cholesterol, in rats were confirmed. However, we also observed a significant reduction in absolute amount of serum HDL and a significant increase in relative liver and spleen weights in both sexes with the high dose of FOC. High doses of FOC (5 mL/kg/d) reduced serum iron and vitamin E concentrations. A reduction in osmotic fragility of RBC as well as an increase in RBC deformity were also observed in rats treated with high doses of FOC. These rats showed a significant overall increase in WBC count. We conclude that in rats, subchronic consumption of high levels of FOC can be beneficial but may also be harmful because of induction of clinical abnormalities including increased red cell deformity, increased relative liver and spleen weights, and reduced serum HDL, iron and vitamin E concentrations.

Feasibility of a defined microflora challenge method for evaluating the efficacy of foodborne Listeria monocytogenes selective enrichments.

Comparison of isolation methods for microbial pathogens is complicated by the variable interference caused by the competitive microflora present in test samples such as foods. In principle, using measured amounts of a standard competitor in a defined surrogate food matrix might control the effect of variable interference. This possibility was investigated using Listeria monocytogenes and enrichment broths belonging to the acriflavine-nalidixate selective agent class. Triplicate test sample sets were prepared. Each set consisted of suspensions of variable levels of the standard competitor, Enterococcus faecium strain 111 (approximately 10 to 10(9) CFU/25 g), mixed with a low constant level (10 to 100 CFU/25 g) of L. monocytogenes. These test samples were enriched at 30 degrees C for 48 h in different selective media and streaked onto selective isolation agars. The input CFU ratio (E. faecium/L. monocytogenes) that permitted a 50% end point L. monocytogenes recovery was 2.2 x 10(6) or higher for the Food and Drug Administration one-step enrichments and 0.8 x 10(6) for the International Standards Organization (ISO) two-step enrichment. These and other results show that this evaluation method is feasible with this class of enrichments. Interestingly, L. monocytogenes could be detected in enrichment cultures at high-input E. faecium/L. monocytogenes ratios even when the enriched samples were plated onto nonselective media. The pinpoint colonies of L. monocytogenes embedded in a confluent lawn of E. faecium 111 were detectable by their contrasting coloration in Henry obliquely transmitted illumination.