Funded under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4 Component 2 Investment 1.3, Theme 10.
Funded under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4 Component 2 Investment 1.3, Theme 10.
Identifying and limiting emerging threats to food safety
Coordinator
Standard protocols (ISO), whole genome sequencing (WGS), computational methodologies, and MetaOmic approaches (metagenomics, metatrascriptomics, metabolomics, lipidomics, culturomics and phenomics) will be applied for the identification and characterization of the new and (re)-emerging chemical and biological hazards in traditional products, related to climate changes, microbial evolution, and modifications in the manufacturing processes. Omics techniques will also be applied to study factors affecting the survival and the stress resistance mechanisms of pathogens and antimicrobial resistant (AMR) bacteria during food processing and shelf life. In addition, a CAD-based automatic feature recognition procedure will be developed for hygienic design of food machinery, as a prerequisite for GMP in food production.
The task includes: a) the development of advanced predictive models describing the effects of uncontrolled or unexpected processing/storage conditions on chemical biological risks; b) the reduction of the allergenic potential/toxicity of foods
The task includes evaluation of safety parameters in traditional and novel foods through the development of: a) chemical sensors and immunosensors for the selective detection of algal and plant toxins, and trace allergens; b) portable devices based on laser photoacoustic spectroscopy (LPAS) and other spectroscopy techniques; c) Ambient Desorption Ionisation methods with High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry (DESI-HRMS); e) use of rt-PCR and digital droplet-PCR to evaluate new and (re)-emerging foodborne pathogenic species; f) metabolomics and proteomics strategies coupled to pathway analysis to evaluate the effects of emerging and re-emerging contaminants; d) analytical techniques, i.e., spectroscopic and MS-based, to determine biogenic amines, pesticides, veterinary drug residues, mycotoxins and processing toxicants; and g) new Matrix-Reference Materials to be characterised for food safety parameters will be developed, including preparation of test-lots, their characterization and homogeneity and stability studies.
Database of WGS data of foodborne pathogens (M24)
Advanced predictive model(s) and novel strategies to mitigate the biological/chemical risks (M18)
Report on the development and testing of new analytical techniques for targeted analysis of contaminants (M36)
Food products are threatened by pathogens that can cause productivity losses as well as health issues to consumers. Many mycotoxins are regulated by European authorities due to their toxicity but recently described potentially toxic compounds produced by plant pathogens, that are not currently regulated and may represent safety risks to consumers, need to be detected. The development and validation of fast detection methods for mycotoxin assessment as well as non-destructive methods for developing preventive strategies is of fundamental importance to reduce food losses and increasing the safety of food products.
Novel strategies for limiting mycotoxin accumulation in food and feed are also needed.
Moreover, an emerging class of plant pathogens can infect food products but can also cause diseases in humans. They are cross-kingdom pathogens, able to plastically adapt to different hosts causing a direct threat to the safety of consumers. Deciphering their mechanisms of infection and monitoring their spread with molecular markers is the key to assess the risk they pose to consumers health.
The activity of the unit will focus on:
