Small Produce Farm Environments Can Harbor Diverse Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria spp. Populations

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dc.contributor.authorBelias, Alexandraen
dc.contributor.authorStrawn, Laura K.en
dc.contributor.authorWiedmann, Martinen
dc.contributor.authorWeller, Danielen
dc.contributor.departmentFood Science and Technologyen
dc.date.accessioned2021-08-05T11:55:01Zen
dc.date.available2021-08-05T11:55:01Zen
dc.date.issued2021-01en
dc.description.abstractA comprehensive understanding of foodborne pathogen diversity in preharvest environments is necessary to effectively track pathogens on farms and identify sources of produce contamination. As such, this study aimed to characterize Listeria diversity in wildlife feces and agricultural water collected from a New York state produce farm over a growing season. Water samples were collected from a pond (n = 80) and a stream (n = 52). Fecal samples (n = 77) were opportunistically collected from areas <5 m from the water sources; all samples were collected from a <0.5-km(2) area. Overall, 86 (41%) and 50 (24%) of 209 samples were positive for Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria spp. (excluding L. monocytogenes), respectively. For each positive sample, one L. monocytogenes or Listeria spp. isolate was speciated by sequencing the sigB gene, thereby allowing for additional characterization based on the sigB allelic type. The 86 L. monocytogenes and 50 Listeria spp. isolates represented 8 and 23 different allelic types, respectively. A subset of L. monocytogenes isolates (n = 44) from pond water and pond-adjacent feces (representing an similar to 5,000-m(2) area) were further characterized by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE); these 44 isolates represented 22 PFGE types, which is indicative of considerable diversity at a small spatial scale. Ten PFGE types were isolated more than once, suggesting persistence or reintroduction of PFGE types in this area. Given the small spatial scale, the prevalence of L. monocytogenes and Listeria spp., as well as the considerable diversity among isolates, suggests traceback investigations may be challenging. For example, traceback of finished product or processing facility contamination with specific subtypes to preharvest sources may require collection of large sample sets and characterization of a considerable number of isolates. Our data also support the adage "absence of evidence does not equal evidence of absence" as applies to L. monocytogenes traceback efforts at the preharvest level. HIGHLIGHTS There is considerable Listeria diversity in the farm environment investigated. Listeria subtypes were reintroduced or persisted over the growing season. Four L. monocytogenes PFGE types were shared between feces and pond samples.en
dc.description.notesThis work is supported by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Specialty Crop Research Initiative grant 2019-51181-30016 from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Manuscript preparation and revision were also partially supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health (NIH), under award T32ES007271, and the Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station and the Hatch Program of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the USDA or NIH.en
dc.description.sponsorshipU.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Specialty Crop Research Initiative grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture [2019-51181-30016]; National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health (NIH)United States Department of Health & Human ServicesNational Institutes of Health (NIH) - USANIH National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) [T32ES007271]; Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station; Hatch Program of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDAen
dc.description.versionPublished versionen
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.4315/JFP-20-179en
dc.identifier.eissn1944-9097en
dc.identifier.issn0362-028Xen
dc.identifier.issue1en
dc.identifier.pmid32916716en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10919/104581en
dc.identifier.volume84en
dc.language.isoenen
dc.rightsCreative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 Internationalen
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/en
dc.subjectAgricultural wateren
dc.subjectFecesen
dc.subjectListeriaen
dc.subjectPulsed-field gel electrophoresisen
dc.subjectsigBen
dc.titleSmall Produce Farm Environments Can Harbor Diverse Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria spp. Populationsen
dc.title.serialJournal of Food Protectionen
dc.typeArticle - Refereeden
dc.type.dcmitypeTexten
dc.type.dcmitypeStillImageen

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