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by Linda L. Leake
Purdue University microbiology professor Arun Bhunia (standing) and postdoctoral researcher Padmapriya Banada are using a system that analyzes scattered laser light to quickly identify bacteria in food samples.
Photo by Tom Campbell, courtesy of Purdue University
logical tests are done annually in the world, but the number is increasing, Fung says. Based on data available at this moment, about 33% of all testing is done in North America, 33% in Europe, and 33% in the rest of the world. But in the next 1015 years, the dynamics will change to 25% in North America, 25% in Europe, and 50% in the rest of the world. He adds that his native China, with a population of 1.3 billion, will set a bold new pace. When China opens up to rapid testing, the market will be huge. Southeast Asia, South America, Africa, the Middle East, and the Pacific Rim will also contribute to market growth in the years ahead.
Multi-Billion-Dollar Industry
According to the market report Food-Micro 2005 published by Strategic Consulting, Inc., Woodstock, Vt. (www.strategic-consult.com), the global market currently includes more than 625 million food industry microbiological tests completed in 2005, with a market value exceeding $1.65 billion. The food sector represents the largest market segment within the industrial microbiology market and represents almost 50% of the total market, says Thomas Weschler (weschler@strategic-consult.com), SCI President. The food sector is more than double the size of any other industrial segments, including the pharmaceutical, beverage, environmental, industrial processing, and personal-care products sectors. Since 1998, the market value for food microbiology has grown significantly and has had an annual growth rate of 9.2%, Weschler points out. Based on SCI research, the food microbiology testing market is expected to grow to 822.8 million tests in 2010 with a market value of $2.4 billion, he relates. This represents a projected annual growth rate of 5.6% in testing volume. Driving this growth worldwide is an increase in food consumption, consumer demand, industrys food safety priorities, and regulation, Weschler says. The acceleration of the conversion of traditional microbiological testing methods to rapid methods is a function of those phenomena. Its no surprise that, despite the higher
o many rapid microbial tests, so little time. Thats at once the dream come true and dream to come of scientists everywhere. Faster methods and continually emerging technologies have revolutionized microbial testing in recent years, slashing first hours, then days, off the time to get results. Rapid testing is gaining momentum nationally and internationally as an area of research and as a reliable tool to monitor the kinds, numbers, and metabolites of microorganisms related to food spoilage, food preservation, food fermentation, and food safety, says Daniel Y. C. Fung (danfung@k-state.edu), Professor of Food Science in the Dept. of Animal Sciences and Industry at Kansas State University, Manhattan, and a leading authority on rapid microbial testing.
Faster methods and continually emerging technologies have revolutionized microbial testing in recent years.
Routinely traversing the globe to give lectures, conduct workshops, and discuss the role of rapid testing of food for safety and security, as well as of water, environmental, air, industrial, and medical specimens, Fung lives and breathes 24/7 with his finger on the pulse of whats happening all over the planet relative to this hot topic. No one knows exactly how many microbiopg
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Samples are added to the Saber Detection System for automated sample processing.
cost per test, these newer methods are being used more frequently because they provide faster results and/or ease-of-use benefits compared to traditional testing. Nonetheless, traditional methods still account for approximately 65% of the microbiological tests performed worldwide in the food
Reality Check
Despite these developments, its critical to keep the big picture in perspective, says Michael Doyle (mdoyle@uga.edu), a food microbiologist and Director of the Center for Food Safety at the University of Georgia, Griffin. Rapid methods to tions starting at 10 2 /mL. Purdue University researchers have developed a new system Bacteria Rapid Detection Using Optical Scattering Technology that analyzes scattered laser light to quickly identify bacteria for applications in medicine, food processing, and homeland security, reportedly at one-tenth the cost of conventional technologies (Bayraktar et al., 2006). With this system, photons bounce off of the colony, and the pattern of scattered light is projected onto a screen behind the Petri dish. This light-scatter pattern is recorded with a digital camera and analyzed with sophisticated software to identify the types of bacteria. Using this method, it takes less than 5 min to identify harmful organisms. To date, the system has been proven to accurately identify six species of Listeria , plus select species of Salmonella , Vibrio, Escherichia coli , and Bacillus .
preted quantitatively, which could help identify hot spots and contamination sources. It provides results in about 30 hr from the time of sample collection. An additional attribute of this testing kit is that is requires no enrichment, which means less risks of cross-contamination due to culture transfers. Whatman plc, Florham Park, N.J. (www.whatman. com), offers the FTA Concentrator-PS , a portable two-stage filter co-developed with the Food and Drug Administration that can detect Cryptosporidium , Giardia , Cyclosporia , and other dangerous parasites in fresh produce and water supplies. The field test, which will be used primarily by regulatory agencies and municipalities, takes as little as 15 min, and definitive results can be obtained the same day. The device uses FTA , a
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cheaper than employing and training a person to do less-expensive testing methods. Theres additional good news for most of the food industry, Donnelly saystheres not much difference in results between expensive tests and inexpensive tests, so users can decide what is most appropriate for their specific budget.
The blue line in this rapid test indicates the presence of Listeria.
Photo courtesy of Kansas State University
detect pathogens are still not rapid, he purports. Most methods require 824 hr to get results. We need to get it down to less than 15 min. Progress is being made toward that goal, he says. The Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, and the food industry have initiatives to promote food safety programs based on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) principles, he points out. That work can benefit greatly from real-time microbial tests that take minutes, not all day. Thus far, Doyle says, no test is sensitive enough to match the regulatory gold standard of one detectable target organism in a 25-g sample. We currently need 10 3 10 5 target bacteria/mL sample to detect target organisms, he relates. Scientists are getting the minimum down to 10 3 /mL, but we still need better ways to concentrate bacteria to increase sensitivity, Doyle emphasizes. Breakthroughs in this regard should be forthcoming in the next few years. Catherine Donnelly (catherine.donnelly@ uvm.edu), Professor of Microbiology in the Dept. of Nutrition and Food Sciences at the University of Vermont, Burlington, is energized by current rapid test happenings and the prospects of new developments. Its a really exciting time to be a food microbiologist, she says. The advantages testing technology provide are outstanding. Rapid tests are user friendly, accurate, and approved by AOAC International. There are a variety of options for users. Embracing reality in her renowned work with Listeria , Donnelly is quick to point out that rapid microbial testing is characterized by good news and bad news. The good news is the technology, she explains. The bad news is that some equipment and instruments come with a hefty price tag. Some rapid tests are more cost effective than others. But its important to keep in mind that some expensive instruments are
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REFERENCE
Bayraktar, B., Banada, P.P., Hirleman, E. D., Bhunia, A.K., Robinson, J.P. and Rajwa, B. 2006. Feature extraction from light-scatter patterns of Listeria colonies for identification and classification. J. Biomedical Optics. 11(3): 034006.
Linda L. Leake, Contributing Editor, Food Safety Consultant, Wilmington, N.C. llleake@aol.com
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