METHOD FOR DETECTION OF PATHOGENS IN FOOD

摘要

The invention provides a method for the specific detection of a target pathogen in a sample. The method of the invention comprises, as a first step, incubating the sample under sufficient conditions to enrich the target pathogen population in the sample. As a second step, the target pathogen is selected by immunoselection from the sample enriched in the first step. The selection of the target pathogen is followed by amplification of a nucleic acid sequence specific to the target pathogen from the target pathogen so selected. The amplified nucleic acid sequence is then detected, the presence of the amplified nucleic acid sequence indicating the presence of the target pathogen. By following the method of theinvention, a single colony-forming unit (CFU) of bacterial pathogen can be detected in a contaminated food product in 8 hours or less. The invention provides improved tools for rapid and early detection of pathogens, including E. coli O157:H7, and Salmonella strains: S. agona; S. anatum; S. enteritidis; S. havana; S. krefeld; S. lilee; S. melegredis; S. montevideo; S. munster; S. newport; S. saintpaul; S. schwarzengrund; S. tennessee; S. typhimurium and S. worthington, among others. In one embodiment, the invention provides a method for the detection of a target pathogen in a food sample. This method can be useful for screening food products for the presence of contaminating organisms to minimize the risk of food poisoning. In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for the detection of a target pathogen in a patient sample. This method can be useful for diagnosing infection by a microbial pathogen.