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Norovirus (NoV) and hepatitis A virus (HAV) pose a considerable health risk worldwide. In recent years, many cases of virus infection caused by virus‐contaminated strawberries have occurred worldwide. This study applied a critical control point system to analyze the main hazards during the production and marketing of strawberries imported into China and explore the key control points in the whole process. To further evaluate the risks in the supply chain, the established quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) was used to determine the probability that residents would be infected with viruses after consuming imported strawberries. It was found that the risk of virus contamination from imported strawberries was low, and the virus contamination mainly results from water resources and personnel. This research helps the regulatory authorities formulate strategies to ensure the long‐term microbial safety of imported strawberries. In addition, the methods may prove useful in evaluating the risks of other agricultural produce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is a highly infectious disease that mainly infects small ruminants. To date, PPR has been confirmed in more than 70 countries. In China, PPR has occurred in more than 20 provinces and cities. In this study, based on geographic information system (GIS), spatial analysis was used to examine the occurrence of PPR in China from 2007 to 2018. The results showed that PPR first occurred in Tibet and gradually spread to other provinces. The outbreaks of PPR were concentrated in 2014, 2015 and 2018. Combining climate factors with the maximum entropy (MaxEnt), the results also suggested that the potential risk areas of PPR outbreaks in China were mainly Jiangsu, Yunnan and Anhui in Southeast China. Finally, a phylogenetic tree was used to analyse the evolutionary relationship between the peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV) in China and the global ones, and it was found that the one in China had a close genetic relationship with the one in Mongolia, India and Bangladesh. Understanding and forecasting the distribution of PPR in China will help policymakers develop targeted monitoring plans. Likewise, analysing the global PPRV epidemic trends will play an important role in the elimination and prevention of PPR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Edible vegetable oil is a necessity in people's daily diet, and its safety has attracted the attention of the government and consumers. In recent years, the safety incidents of edible vegetable oil are reported, and the safety problems of edible vegetable oil caused by chemical hazards such as benzopyrene, heavy metal and aflatoxin B1 are more serious. In this research, a risk assessment model through dietary exposure assessment and margin of exposure (MOE) were built to assess the health risks of benzopyrene, aflatoxin B1, and heavy metals in edible vegetable oils. And then an early warning model of food oil safety risk was established by using analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and back propagation (BP) neural network. According to the national standards and sampling data, the risk early warning model determined eight evaluation indexes of vegetable oil quality and safety, and calculated the risk value of chemical pollution in vegetable oil by Entropy Weight-Analytic Hierarchy Process(EW-AHP). The data of eight evaluation indexes were taken as the input of the model, and the comprehensive risk value was taken as the output of the model. The model learning process was carried out, and four algorithms, namely Support Vector Machine (SVM), Random Forest (RF), Radial Basis Function Neural Network (RBF) and Neural Network (BP), were selected for construction and comparison of model. The daily sampling data of chemical hazard factors in edible vegetable oil were quantified into specific chemical hazard risk levels. Thus the goal of predicting chemical hazard levels was achieved in edible vegetable oil. This study provides targeted reference suggestions for the safety supervision of edible vegetable oil, so as to improve the efficiency of supervision and ensure the consumption safety of edible vegetable oil. • Quantitative risk assessment models for benzopyrene, aflatoxin-B1 and heavy metals in edible vegetable oils (EVO) in China. • Early warning model based on machine learning for EVO. • Analyses of exposure and health risk for EVO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

FMD is an acute contagious disease that poses a significant threat to the health and safety of cloven-hoofed animals in Asia, Europe, and Africa. The impact of FMD exhibits geographical disparities within different regions of China. The present investigation undertook an exhaustive analysis of documented occurrences of bovine FMD in China, spanning the temporal range from 2011 to 2020. The overarching objective was to elucidate the temporal and spatial dynamics underpinning these outbreaks. Acknowledging the pivotal role of global factors in FMD outbreaks, advanced machine learning techniques were harnessed to formulate an optimal prediction model by integrating comprehensive meteorological data pertinent to global FMD. Random Forest algorithm was employed with top three contributing factors including Isothermality(bio3), Annual average temperature(bio1) and Minimum temperature in the coldest month(bio6), all relevant to temperature. By encompassing both local and global factors, our study provides a comprehensive framework for understanding and predicting FMD outbreaks. Furthermore, we conducted a phylogenetic analysis to trace the origin of Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), pinpointing India as the country posing the greatest potential hazard by leveraging the spatio-temporal attributes of the collected data. Based on this finding, a quantitative risk model was developed for the legal importation of live cattle from India to China. The model estimated an average probability of 0.002254% for FMDV-infected cattle imported from India to China. TA sensitivity analysis identified two critical nodes within the model: he possibility of false negative clinical examination in infected cattle at destination (P5) and he possibility of false negative clinical examination in infected cattle at source(P3). This comprehensive approach offers a thorough evaluation of FMD landscape within China, considering both domestic and global perspectives, thereby augmenting the efficacy of early warning mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increases in pore water pressure affect the effective stress state of loess soil, resulting in deformation and even soil erosion. However, it is still unclear how the mechanical behaviours and microstructures of soil are influenced by the rate of increase in pore water pressure (RIPWP). To better understand the mechanical failure process and properties of soil under different RIPWPs, a series of constant-shear drained (CSD) triaxial tests were carried out on Q 2 loess (silt loam, a loose aeolian deposit) in the South Jingyang Platform of China. Further, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) tests were conducted on the samples before and after the triaxial tests to observe the microscopic characteristics of the soil, and reveal the microscopic mechanism of liquefaction failure in soil under CSD triaxial tests. The results showed that the failure process was divided into two stages of 1) stable creep and 2) sharply unstable deformation. In the second stage, rapid-slow strain development was observed at relatively low RIPWPs. With increases in RIPWP, the critical pore pressure ratio u / σ c increased within the range of 0.48–0.66. Microscopic analysis of the samples after shearing found clay particles filling the pores and obvious aggregation structures. In addition, macropores and mesopores were transformed into micropores. With increases in RIPWP, the orientations of particles and pores increased and the abundance and fractal dimension of pores decreased. In conclusion, the microscopic mechanism of soil instability under CSD triaxial testing was as follows. Increases in pore water pressure led to the dispersion of fine particles, weakening of cementation, and the rotation and recombination of coarse particles within the soil. In addition, the clay particles rolled, slipped and filled into pore throats, resulting in the blockage of seepage channels and, correspondingly, rapid increases in local pore water pressure. Finally, the loess liquefied due to a sudden collapse of its structure under the effect of long-term high pore water pressure. These results can provide a theoretical guidance for soil management and slope instability prevention. • The rate of increase in pore water pressure (RIPWP) was as a variable. • Constant-shear drained (CSD) triaxial test samples were sheared by increasing the back pressure. • The critical pore pressure ratio was lower than those of traditional triaxial tests. • The formation of rapid-slow strain states was explained. • The microscopic mechanism of loess slope instability was revealed by combining mechanical tests and SEM tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pork is an important part of the daily diet of the Chinese population, and its safety has attracted the attention of the government and consumers. This study aims to assess the degree of heavy metal pollution of pork in the Chinese market, and to study the preventive measures against the main factors of heavy metal pollution in the supply chain, so as to reduce the health risks associated with eating this type of meat. 126 previously published levels of heavy metals in Chinese pork were collected from www.cnki.net. The pollution index of lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury in pork as calculated by using the single pollution index method was found to be less than 0.7, and the pollution level of each single heavy metal in pork was deemed to be at the safe level. Then the risk of heavy metals in pork for different consumer age groups was assessed by using the Target Hazard Quotient (THQ) and Incremental life cancer risk (ILCR). These criteria are based on the weights and dietary habits of Chinese residents. The results showed that the contribution rate of lead in pork to Total THQ (TTHQ) was 42.2%, which was higher than for any other heavy metals. At the same time, it can be concluded that the ILCR of arsenic in [2,4] age groups exceeded the maximum acceptable limit (1 × 10−4). Finally, the fault tree method was combined with the pork supply chain to comprehensively analyze the causes of heavy metal pollution in pork. The results show that the structural importance coefficient of strengthening government supervision and improving China's food safety standard system is 1, which is the key to prevent the occurrence of heavy metal hazards in pork in China. Furthermore, the lead pollution incidents which occurred in pork obtained from the Nanjing Farmers Market were used as example cases in order to show the feasibility of using the fault tree methodology. This study provides a scientific and advanced theoretical guidance for further strengthening the ability of pork safety risk assessment and to assess the risks associated with pork consumption. [Display omitted] • The pollution level of heavy metal in pork was evaluated by pollution index. • Health risks of children eating contaminated pork were higher than those of adults. • The key control points of accidents were found out by the constructed fault tree. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bluetongue disease is an infectious disease transmitted by Culicoides as vectors, mainly infecting ruminants. Because ruminants play an important role in animal husbandry in China, the outbreak of bluetongue disease can cause serious economic losses. Maxent model was applied to predict the distribution of bluetongue in China based on the data derived from domestic and foreign academic literature databases including CNKI, Wanfang Database, PubMed, Web of Science and Google Scholar. The results showed that annual mean temperature (BIO1), precipitation in driest month (BIO14), sheep density (SD) and altitude (Elev) were the relevant variables of bioclimatic suitable zones for bluetongue disease. Precipitation in wettest month (BIO13), BIO1, BIO14, Elev were the main variables affecting the habitat of the bluetongue vector Culicoides. The most suitable climate for bluetongue infection occurs in southern China, central China and parts of Xinjiang. The suitable living areas of Culicoides are mainly located in southern, central and eastern China, and the overlap of the two suitable areas is high. The study suggested that southern, central, and eastern China are high-risk areas for bluetongue due to the significant overlap of suitable habitats for both the disease and its vector. Implementing effective surveillance and targeted control strategies in these regions is crucial for mitigating the impact of bluetongue disease., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Pork is one of the most commonly consumed meats, and its safety has always been a concern. Recently, safety incidents caused by chemical or biological contamination such as drug residues, heavy metals, and pathogenic microorganisms in pork have been reported, and the safety of pork is a cause for concern. Salmonella spp. is one of the important foodborne pathogens that threaten human health. Pork is a high-risk vector food for Salmonella spp. infection. The assessment of the safety risk of Salmonella spp. in pork is conducive to the prevention of related foodborne diseases. In this paper, risk assessment models for Salmonella spp. in meat were developed. The quantitative risk assessment model for Salmonella spp. based on the pork supply chain showed that the annual number of cases of salmonellosis due to pork consumption in China is approximately 27 per 10,000 males and 24 per 10,000 females. Sensitivity analysis showed that the main factors affecting the risk of Salmonella spp. in pork were the display temperature, display time, and Salmonella spp. contamination concentration in pork at the sale., (© 2024. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to Sociedade Brasileira de Microbiologia.)

Heavy metal pollution is a major threat to agricultural produce and it can pose potential ecological risks which subsequently impacts on human health. Strawberries are an economically important produce of China. The intrinsic link of heavy metal pollution risk in the soil-strawberry ecosystem is of concern. In this study, the pollution index of heavy metal pollutants in farmlands of different provinces were evaluated, and the results showed significantly high levels of cadmium. In addition, Nemerow integrated pollution index analysis showed that low-pollution farmlands only accounted for 14.07% of the total arable land area. Then, the transfer factors were used to calculate the migration of heavy metals from the soil into strawberries. The results showed that cadmium and nickel were relatively high in strawberries from the Guangxi province. Similar results were found for mercury in Jiangxi Province. The pollution index of single food pollution also showed that mercury in strawberries from Jiangxi Province was at a moderate pollution level. The comprehensive pollution index indicated that heavy metal pollution in strawberries in Central China may be severe. In addition, spatial clustering analysis showed that cadmium, chromium, lead, arsenic and zinc in strawberries had significant hotspot clustering in central, south and southwest China. Finally, our studies also suggested that the risk of carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic diseases was higher in the (2, 4] years age group than in other age groups. People in Yunnan Province were also found to have a higher non-carcinogenic risk than those in other provinces and cities in China. This study provides a comprehensive view of the potential risks of heavy metal contamination in strawberries, which could provide assistance in the design of regulatory and risk management programs for chemical pollutants in strawberries, thus ensuring the safety of consumption of these edible fruits., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Abstract: Veterinary drugs, including antibiotics, antiparasitics, and growth promoters, are widely used in animal husbandry. Veterinary drug residues are key issues of food safety because they arouse public concern and can seriously endanger the health of consumers. To assess the risk of veterinary drug residues in pork sold in the People's Republic of China, the potential veterinary drug residue risks in imported and domestic pork were analyzed based on regulatory differences and veterinary drug residue safety incidents. For imported pork, a risk assessment model was established based on the differences in veterinary drug residue limits for the People's Republic of China, Brazil, the United States, Australia, Thailand, and Russia combined with comprehensive evaluation methods. The potential risk of veterinary drug residues in U.S. pork was the highest, and that in Brazilian pork was the lowest. For domestic pork, the distribution and aggregation of veterinary drug residue safety incidents in the People's Republic of China was analyzed from 2015 to 2019 with a geographic information system. This study provides new insights into the safety of pork on the Chinese market and a scientific basis for formulating targeted supervision and early warning strategies., (Copyright ©, International Association for Food Protection.)

Abstract: Aquatic products are favored by people all over the world, but the potential quality and safety issues cannot be ignored. To determine the risk of veterinary drug residues in aquatic products in the Yangtze River Delta, this study used geographic information system method to analyze Chinese veterinary drugs in aquatic products in Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Anhui (Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomerations) from 2017 to 2019. A study of the spatial distribution pattern, hot spot detection and analysis, and spatiotemporal cluster analysis of the residual excess rate and detection rate showed a random spatial distribution in the overall excess rate and detection rate of veterinary drug residues in aquatic products from 2017 to 2019. The results of hot spot analysis and spatiotemporal cluster analysis showed that the rate of detection of veterinary drug residues and the rate of detection of residues in excess of regulatory standards were clustered. This study provides a scientific basis for food safety evaluation and risk management suggestions., (Copyright ©, International Association for Food Protection.)

Background: Bile acids (BAs) have attracted attention in the research of irritable bowel syndrome with predominant diarrhea (IBS-D) due to their ability to modulate bowel function and their tight connection with the gut microbiota. The composition of the fecal BA pool in IBS-D patients is reportedly different from that in healthy populations. We hypothesized that BAs may participate in the pathogenesis of IBS-D and the altered BA profile may be correlated with the gut microbiome., Aim: To investigate the role of BAs in the pathogenesis of IBS-D and the correlation between fecal BAs and gut microbiota., Methods: Fifty-five IBS-D patients diagnosed according to the Rome IV criteria and twenty-eight age-, sex-, and body mass index-matched healthy controls (HCs) were enrolled in this study at the gastroenterology department of China-Japan Friendship Hospital. First, clinical manifestations were assessed with standardized questionnaires, and visceral sensitivity was evaluated via the rectal distension test using a high-resolution manometry system. Fecal primary BAs including cholic acid (CA) and chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), secondary BAs including deoxycholic acid (DCA), lithocholic acid (LCA), and ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) as well as the corresponding tauro- and glyco-BAs were examined by ultraperformance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. The gut microbiota was analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Correlations between fecal BAs with clinical features and gut microbiota were explored., Results: Fecal CA (IBS-D: 3037.66 [282.82, 6917.47] nmol/g, HC: 20.19 [5.03, 1304.28] nmol/g; P < 0.001) and CDCA (IBS-D: 1721.86 [352.80, 2613.83] nmol/g, HC: 57.16 [13.76, 1639.92] nmol/g; P < 0.001) were significantly increased, while LCA (IBS-D: 1621.65 [58.99, 2396.49] nmol/g, HC: 2339.24 [1737.09, 2782.40]; P = 0.002] and UDCA (IBS-D: 8.92 [2.33, 23.93] nmol/g, HC: 17.21 [8.76, 33.48] nmol/g; P = 0.025) were significantly decreased in IBS-D patients compared to HCs. Defecation frequency was positively associated with CA ( r = 0.294, P = 0.030) and CDCA ( r = 0.290, P = 0.032) and negatively associated with DCA ( r = -0.332, P = 0.013) and LCA ( r = -0.326, P = 0.015) in IBS-D patients. In total, 23 of 55 IBS-D patients and 15 of 28 HCs participated in the visceral sensitivity test. The first sensation threshold was negatively correlated with CDCA ( r = -0.459, P = 0.028) in IBS-D patients. Furthermore, the relative abundance of the family Ruminococcaceae was significantly decreased in IBS-D patients ( P < 0.001), and 12 genera were significantly lower in IBS-D patients than in HCs ( P < 0.05), with 6 belonging to Ruminococcaceae . Eleven of these genera were negatively correlated with primary BAs and positively correlated with secondary BAs in all subjects., Conclusion: The altered metabolism of BAs in the gut of IBS-D patients was associated with diarrhea and visceral hypersensitivity and might be ascribed to dysbiosis, especially the reduction of genera in Ruminococcaceae ., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors report no conflicts of interest., (©The Author(s) 2020. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.)

Epidemiological studies have corroborated that respiratory diseases, including lung cancer, are related to fine particulate matter (<2.5 μm) (PM 2.5 ) exposure. The toxic responses of PM 2.5 are greatly influenced by the source of PM 2.5 . However, the effects of PM 2.5 from Beijing on bronchial genotoxicity are scarce. In the present study, PM 2.5 from Beijing was sampled and applied in vitro to investigate its genotoxicity and the mechanisms behind it. Human bronchial epithelial cells 16HBE were used as a model for exposure. Low (67.5 μg/mL), medium (116.9 μg/mL), and high (202.5 μg/mL) doses of PM 2.5 were used for cell exposure. After PM 2.5 exposure, cell viability, oxidative stress markers, DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) strand breaks, 8-OH-dG levels, micronuclei formation, and DNA repair gene expression were measured. The results showed that PM 2.5 significantly induced cytotoxicity in 16HBE. Moreover, the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), malondialdehyde (MDA), and cellular heme oxygenase (HO-1) were increased, and the level of glutathione (GSH) was decreased, which represented the occurrence of severe oxidative stress in 16HBE. The micronucleus rate was elevated, and DNA damage occurred as indicators of the comet assay, γ-H2AX and 8-OH-dG, were markedly enhanced by PM 2.5 , accompanied by the influence of 8-oxoguanine DNA glycosylase (OGG1), X-ray repair cross-complementing gene 1 (XRCC1), and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP1) expression. These results support the significant role of PM 2.5 genotoxicity in 16HBE cells, which may occur through the combined effect on oxidative stress and the influence of DNA repair genes.

Background: Cronobacter species are associated with severe foodborne infections in neonates and infants, with particular pathovars associated with specific clinical presentations. However, before 2008 the genus was regarded as a single species named Enterobacter sakazakii which was subdivided into 8 phenotypes. This study re-analyzed, using multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) and whole genome sequence with single nucleotide polymorphism analysis (WGS-SNP), 52 strains which had been identified as Enterobacter sakazakii as according to the convention at the time of isolation. These strains had been isolated from dairy product imports into China from 9 countries between 2005 and 6. Bioinformatic analysis was then used to analyze the relatedness and global dissemination of these strains., Result: FusA allele sequencing revealed that 49/52 strains were Cronobacter sakazakii, while the remaining 3 strains were Escherichia coli, Enterobacter cloacae, and Franconibacter helveticus. The C. sakazakii strains comprised of 8 sequence types (STs) which included the neonatal pathovars ST1, ST4 and ST12. The predominant sequence type was ST13 (65.3%, 32/49) which had been isolated from dairy products imported from 6 countries. WGS-SNP analysis of the 32 C. sakazakii ST13 strains revealed 5 clusters and 5 unique strains which did not correlate with the country of product origin., Conclusion: The mis-identification of E. coli, E. cloacae and F. helveticus as Cronobacter spp. reinforces the need to apply reliable methods to reduce the incidence of false positive and false negative results which may be of clinical significance. The WGS-SNP analysis demonstrated that indistinguishable Cronobacter strains within a sequence type can be unrelated, and may originate from multiple sources. The use of WGS-SNP analysis to distinguishing of strains within a sequence type has important relevance for tracing the source of outbreaks due to Cronobacter spp.