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. 2017 Sep 19;61(3):287-291.
doi: 10.1515/jvetres-2017-0038. eCollection 2017 Sep.

Prevalence of C. Botulinum and C. Perfringens Spores in Food Products Available on Polish Market

Tomasz Grenda  1 , Magdalena Grabczak  1 , Krzysztof Kwiatek  1 , Andrzej Bober  2
Affiliations

Prevalence of C. Botulinum and C. Perfringens Spores in Food Products Available on Polish Market

Tomasz Grenda et al. J Vet Res. .

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of Clostridium botulinum and Clostridium perfringens in food samples purchased from Polish producers.

Material and methods: The analyses were performed on 260 food samples collected in Lublin and Subcarpathian regions: 56 of smoked meat, 21 of pork meat, 20 of dairy products, 26 of vegetable and fruit preserves, 40 of ready-to-eat meals, 27 of fish preserves, and 70 of honey collected directly from apiaries.

Results: C. botulinum strains were isolated from 2.3% (6/260) of samples and the isolates were classified as toxin types A (4/260) and B (2/260). C. perfringens strains were isolated from 14% (37/260) of samples. All the isolates were classified as toxin type A, 28 of them were able also to produce α toxin and 9 - β2 toxin.

Conclusion: On the basis of the obtained results it could be suggested that risk assessment, especially regarding the entire honey harvesting process, should be provided in order to ensure the microbiological safety of the products to be consumed by infants and people with a weakened immune system.

Keywords: Clostridium botulinum; Clostridium perfringens; Poland; food.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interests Statement: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this article.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Example of positive PCR products characteristic for C. botulinum toxin type B (205 bp). M – molecular mass marker; 1, 2 – products characteristic for C. botulinum type B (205 bp); K+ – positive control (DNA from C. botulinum NCTC 3815 able to produce BoNT/B); K- – negative control
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Example of positive PCR products characteristic for C. perfringens type A able to produce toxins α (900 bp) and β2 (200 bp). M – molecular mass marker; 1, 2, 5 – products characteristic for C. perfringens type A able to produce toxins α and β2; 3 –product characteristic for C. perfringens type A able to produce toxin α; K1+ – positive control (DNA from C. perfringens A544/84 able to produce toxins α and β2) K2+ – positive control (DNA from C. perfringens ATCC 13124 able to produce toxin α); K- – negative control
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