International journal of food microbiology最新文献

{"title":"Insights into Alternaria in apple fruit causing mouldy core, external infection and mycotoxin production under retail and storage conditions","authors":"María Agustina Pavicich ,&nbsp;María Luisa Maldonado ,&nbsp;Truong Nhat Nguyen ,&nbsp;Marthe De Boevre ,&nbsp;Sarah De Saeger ,&nbsp;Andrea Patriarca","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111272","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111272","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Apple fruit is widely consumed worldwide, but fungal contamination in the postharvest stage presents a significant food safety concern. This study evaluates the production and accumulation of <em>Alternaria</em> mycotoxins, including alternariol (AOH), alternariol monomethyl-ether (AME), and the modified forms (AOH-3-S, AME-3-S, AOH-3-G, AME-3-G), altenuene (ALT), tenuazonic acid (TeA), tentoxin (TEN), altertoxin I and II (ATX<img>I, ATX-II), in Red Delicious apples under simulated retail and post-harvest conditions. Three <em>Alternaria tenuissima</em> strains (isolates 02, 31 and 36) were inoculated in apple fruit at two sites separately (core and exterior) and incubated at two temperatures (25 °C and 4 °C) for 1 and 9 months. Mycotoxin production was quantified using LC-MS/MS, revealing significant variability across strains and conditions. Isolates 02 and 36 exhibited significant temperature and site-dependent variability in mycotoxin production. Higher levels of AOH, AME, ALT, and ATX-I were produced at 25 °C and in the core. Long-term cold storage delayed fungal growth but did not prevent mycotoxin accumulation, raising concerns about the safety of processed apple products. These findings highlight the need for stricter monitoring of mycotoxins during post-harvest storage to mitigate health risks. The findings provide insights into their toxigenic capacity <em>in vivo</em> and highlight potential risks for food safety.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":"439 ","pages":"Article 111272"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144071471","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Epidemiological and genomic characterization of a rare foodborne outbreak caused by Bacillus paranthracis in Huzhou, China, 2024","authors":"Peng Zhang ,&nbsp;Huimin Yao ,&nbsp;Lei Ji ,&nbsp;Fenfen Dong ,&nbsp;Deshun Xu ,&nbsp;Wei Yan","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111265","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111265","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div><em>Bacillus paranthracis</em> belongs to <em>Bacillus cereus</em> group, Gram-positive and spore-forming bacteria, has the potential to induce foodborne diseases. However, globally reported outbreaks caused by <em>B. paranthracis</em> remain exceptionally rare and the genomic characteristics of outbreak isolates are seldom characterized. We applied epidemiological and genomic investigation to understand the cause of a foodborne outbreak in Huzhou, China, in 2024. Real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR was used for scanning the potential infectious agents, and 10 <em>B. paranthracis</em> isolates were identified, including 4 from patient samples and 6 from food samples. Epidemiological and genomics investigations showed that the <em>B. paranthracis</em> isolate of ST26 from uncooked rice was responsible for this outbreak. Genomic analysis indicated that the 8 strains of ST26 associated with the outbreak had high consistency in drug susceptibility phenotypes, antimicrobial resistance genes, virulence genes, and had very minimal genetic difference. This study underscores that need to implement systematic surveillance of <em>B. paranthracis</em> infections to safeguard public health.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":"439 ","pages":"Article 111265"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144067924","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Whole-genome sequencing of soil- and foodborne Bacillus cereus sensu lato indicates no clear association between their virulence repertoire, genomic diversity and food matrix","authors":"Bram Jacobs ,&nbsp;Bert Bogaerts ,&nbsp;Marie Verhaegen ,&nbsp;Kevin Vanneste ,&nbsp;Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker ,&nbsp;Nancy H.C. Roosens ,&nbsp;Andreja Rajkovic ,&nbsp;Jacques Mahillon ,&nbsp;Tom Van Nieuwenhuysen ,&nbsp;Koenraad Van Hoorde","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111266","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111266","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div><em>Bacillus cereus</em> sensu lato is frequently involved in foodborne toxico-infections and is found in various foodstuff. It is unclear whether certain strains have a higher affinity for specific food matrices, which can be of interest for risk assessment. This study reports the characterization by whole-genome sequencing of 169 <em>B. cereus</em> isolates, isolated from 12 food types and soil over two decades. Any potential links between the food matrix of isolation, the isolate's genetic lineage and/or their (putative) virulence gene reservoir were investigated. More than 20 % of the strains contained the genes for the main potential enterotoxins (<em>nheABC</em>, <em>hblCDA</em> and <em>cytK</em>_2). Cereulide biosynthesis genes and genes encoding hemolysins and phospholipases, were detected in multiple isolates. Strain typing revealed a high diversity, as illustrated by 84 distinct sequence types, including 26 not previously described. This diversity was also reflected in the detection of all seven <em>panC</em> types and 71 unique virulence gene profiles. Core-genome MLST was used for phylogenomic investigation of the entire collection and SNP-based clustering was performed on the four most abundant sequence types, which did not reveal a clear affinity for specific <em>B. cereus</em> lineages or (putative) virulence genes for certain food matrices. Additionally, minimal genetic overlap was observed between soil and foodborne isolates. Clusters of closely-related isolates with common epidemiological metadata were detected. However, some isolates from different food matrices or collected several years apart were found to be genetically identical. This study provides elements that can be used for risk assessment of <em>B. cereus</em> in food.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":"439 ","pages":"Article 111266"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144067925","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Novel molecular mechanisms of gamma-aminobutyric acid production mediated by LuxS/AI-2 quorum sensing system in Limosilactobacillus fermentum B41","authors":"Yunmei Chai,&nbsp;Wentao Zheng,&nbsp;Shaomei Hu,&nbsp;Tingting Yang,&nbsp;Guangwei Chen,&nbsp;Aixiang Huang","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111269","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111269","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>LuxS/AI-2 quorum sensing (QS) systems promotes the production of various functional factors in lactic acid bacteria (LAB) including the production of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). However, the molecular mechanisms underlying GABA biosynthesis mediated by the LuxS/AI-2 QS system in <em>Limosilactobacillus fermentum</em> (<em>L. fermentum</em>) B41 remain unclear. This study investigated the molecular mechanisms of GABA production in <em>L. fermentum</em> B41 by integrating LuxS/AI-2 QS system, proteomic, western blot technology, and fermented milk preparation. The results showed that autoinducer-2 (AI-2) positively correlated with cell density and GABA content of <em>L. fermentum</em> B41, suggesting LuxS/AI-2-QS system regulation of GABA production. Proteomic analysis revealed 657 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) between the LuxS/AI-2-QS system peaks (10<em>h</em>) and lows (2 h), of which 335 were up-regulated, including the critically important s-ribosylhomocysteinase (LuxS) and GABA transaminase (ArgD). The KEGG pathway enrichment analysis revealed that the DEPs were mainly involved in cysteine and methionine metabolism and GABA biosynthesis. Additionally, western blot confirmed that LuxS and ArgD are key proteins for GABA synthesis. The GABA-enriched fermented milk produced using <em>L. fermentum</em> B41 demonstrated a significantly high GABA content of 201.53 ± 7.83 μg/mL (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.05), indicated it promotes GABA production via LuxS/AI-2-QS system. In summary, this study providing new insights into efficient GABA production and the development of GABA-enriched fermented milk.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":"439 ","pages":"Article 111269"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144083995","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Phage applications for biocontrol of enterohemorrhagic E. coli O157:H7 and other Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli","authors":"K. Holzer ,&nbsp;L. Marongiu ,&nbsp;K. Detert ,&nbsp;S. Venturelli ,&nbsp;H. Schmidt ,&nbsp;L.E. Hoelzle","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111267","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111267","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Foodborne outbreaks are becoming increasingly common and linked to zoonotic diseases caused by microbial spillover from wild or farm animals. Furthermore, agricultural animals could be considered reservoirs of multidrug-resistant (MDR) microorganisms. <em>Escherichia coli</em> O157:H7, a widespread foodborne pathogen, poses a substantial hazard due to its ubiquitous environmental distribution, MDR phenotypes, and life-threatening pathogenicity. This bacterium produces a potent toxin (Shiga toxin, Stx) encoded by prophages (Stx-phage). In addition to antibiotic resistance, <em>E. coli</em> O157:H7 has been shown to express more Stx upon treatment with antibiotics such as trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and metronidazole than controls. The combination of MDR and increased pathogenicity upon antibiotic treatment requires the development of alternatives for treating and preventing <em>E. coli</em> O157:H7 and related bacteria. Bacterial viruses (phages) are gaining popularity in clinical and veterinary settings due to their high antibacterial activities and lack of side effects in animals. Phage application in food production can help reduce the spread of <em>E. coli</em> O157:H7 and other Stx-producing <em>E. coli</em> (STEC), thus decreasing the burden of infection and economic loss due to these foodborne zoonoses. The present review will provide an update on phage utilization in the food industry to reduce the STEC load, with particular focus on O157:H7.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":"439 ","pages":"Article 111267"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144072494","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Corrigendum to \"Recent insights on the multifaceted roles of wooden tools in cheese-making: A review of their impacts on safety and final traits of traditional cheeses\" [Int. J. Food Microbiol. 111179 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111179].","authors":"Silvia Ruta, Giovanni Belvedere, Giuseppe Licitra, Luís Augusto Nero, Cinzia Caggia, Cinzia L Randazzo, Margherita Caccamo","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111239","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111239","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"111239"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143985241","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Investigating the antifungal mechanism of Artemisia argyi essential oil against Botrytis cinerea, Alternaria alternata, and Penicillium digitatum and its application in extending blueberry shelf life","authors":"Yue-yan Chen ,&nbsp;Yu-dong Zhang ,&nbsp;Li Wang ,&nbsp;Mei-qing Li ,&nbsp;Yu Wang ,&nbsp;Jin Liang ,&nbsp;Dong-liang Wang ,&nbsp;Hai-wei Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111262","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111262","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The trend towards reducing chemical fungicides in the food industry has increased interest in antimicrobial essential oils for food preservation. This study investigates the chemical composition of <em>Artemisia argyi</em> essential oil (AAEO) and its efficacy in inhibiting <em>Botrytis cinerea</em>, <em>Alternaria alternata</em>, and <em>Penicillium digitatum</em>, along with potential antifungal mechanisms involved. GC–MS analysis identified that the main components of AAEO were eucalyptol (19.19 %), L(−)-borneol (6.38 %), camphor (6.17 %), (+)-thujone (5.74 %), terpinen-4-ol (5.55 %), and <em>p</em>-cymene (5.31 %). AAEO demonstrated significant antifungal activity against all three fungi, especially through non-contact exposure. Exposure to AAEO increased AKP, nucleic acid and soluble proteins release, reflecting cell wall and membrane integrity alterations. AAEO also reduced biofilm formation, cell viability, and respiratory activity. SEM images revealed cellular fractures and deformations in the fungal cell walls. The fumigation with AAEO during storage resulted in a significant reduction of both the decay rate (by 24.7 %) and pathogen infestation (by 61.2 %) in blueberries on the 13th day of storage. A 50.8 % reduction in <em>Alternaria alternata</em> incidence was observed in inoculated blueberries by day 4 post-AAEO treatment. Therefore, AAEO is a potent antifungal agent against <em>B. cinerea</em>, <em>A. alternata</em>, and <em>P. digitatum</em>, positioning it a promising option for food preservation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":"439 ","pages":"Article 111262"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143943255","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Strawberry preservation using multilayer chitosan films grafted with phenolic acids and loaded with γ-CD-MOFs encapsulated antifungal agents","authors":"Linyun Mou ,&nbsp;Wei Jiang ,&nbsp;Ya Lu ,&nbsp;Jianlong Li ,&nbsp;Ganpeng Li ,&nbsp;Hai Yuan ,&nbsp;Ziyi Jiang ,&nbsp;Lingzhi Zhang ,&nbsp;Tingyin Ming","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111247","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111247","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Post-harvest spoilage of strawberries is a pressing issue that requires urgent attention. This study successfully isolated and identified two saprophytic fungi responsible for strawberry rot—<em>Aspergillus tubingensis</em> and <em>Alternaria alternata</em>. Subsequently, the response surface methodology was employed to optimize the concentration ratios of citral, geraniol, and menthol, aiming to maximize their combined effect on inhibiting fungal growth. Molecular docking techniques were employed to investigate the binding targets of these active substances with 14<em>α</em>-demethylase (CYP51). The antifungal agents at optimized concentrations were loaded into <em>γ</em>-cyclodextrin metal-organic frameworks (<em>γ</em>-CD-MOFs) and uniformly dispersed within a multilayer film composed of phenolic acid-grafted modified chitosan. This approach significantly enhanced (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05) the mechanical properties of chitosan, including fracture tensile strain among others, while also endowed it with dual functionalities of antifungal and antioxidant effects. Additionally, it offered excellent controlled-release characteristics, ensuring a steady and continuous release of active ingredients. Finally, the application of multilayer films to postharvest strawberries significantly reduced the decay rate (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001) and weight loss (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05), while also limiting their respiratory intensity. In summary, the multilayer film demonstrates excellent preservation effects on strawberries, thus holding broad application prospects in food preservation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":"439 ","pages":"Article 111247"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143943256","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Bioactive films with essential oils and machine learning for controlling Aspergillus niger growth and fumonisin B2 production in vitro","authors":"Fernando Mateo ,&nbsp;Andrea Tarazona ,&nbsp;Rafael Gavara ,&nbsp;Eva María Mateo","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111251","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111251","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div><em>Aspergillus niger</em> is an important species in the fungal community of many foods and is one of the most significant microorganisms used in biotechnology. Some <em>A. niger</em> strains are capable of producing fumonisin B₂ (FB₂) under certain conditions, but little is known about methods to control them, especially in organic foods. FB₂ is a mycotoxin with high toxicity for humans and animals. Effective strategies to control <em>A. niger</em> and FB₂ in agricultural commodities are needed. In this study, ethylene-vinyl alcohol (EVOH) copolymer films containing <em>Origanum vulgare</em> (ORE), <em>Cinnamomum zeylanicum</em> (CIN) essential oils (EO) or individual EO components such as carvacrol (CAR) cinnamaldehyde (CINHO), citral (CIT), isoeugenol (IEG) and linalool (LIN) were evaluated as antifungal and anti-fumonisin agents against two isolates of <em>A. niger</em> isolated from organic maize grains grown in Spain. Radial colony growth rate (GR), effective doses to reduce or completely inhibit fungal growth by 50, 90, and 100 % (ED₅₀, ED₉₀, and ED₁₀₀), and FB₂ levels were determined in all cultures. Assays were performed under different water activities (a_w) (0.95–0.99) and temperatures (20–35 °C). Machine learning (ML) models to predict GR and FB₂ production were developed. Fungal isolate, film type, doses, a_w and temperature had significant effects on film efficacy to control <em>A. niger</em> growth and FB₂ production. Optimal GR was found at 0.99 a_w and 35 °C, and optimal FB₂ production occurred at 0.97 a_w and 28 °C. The most effective bioactive film against <em>A. niger</em> and FB₂ production was EVOH-CINHO, followed by EVOH-IEG and EVOH-CAR; the worst film was EVOH-LIN. <em>A. niger</em> growth was inhibited in the treatments with EVOH-CINHO films at a dose of 250 μg/Petri dish incubated at 20 °C and 0.95 a_w and in the treatments with EVOH films supplemented with IEG, CIT, CAR, or LIN at a dose of 1000 μg/dish. Overall, the XGBoost (extreme gradient boosted tree) and support vector machine (SVM) algorithms generated the most accurate models for predicting GR. The former was also the most effective at predicting FB₂ production. This is the first study on the effect of bioactive films supplemented with EO or its main components on <em>A. niger</em> growth and FB₂ production. The EVOH films incorporating CINHO, IEG, or CIT examined in this study are strongly recommended as biodegradable component in packaging material to control <em>A. niger</em> and FB₂ production in fresh foods, including organic foods.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":"439 ","pages":"Article 111251"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144067927","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Persistence of mcr-1-carrying E. coli in rabbit meat production: Challenges beyond long-term colistin withdrawal","authors":"Marisa Ribeiro-Almeida ,&nbsp;Joana Mourão ,&nbsp;Inês C. Rodrigues ,&nbsp;André Pinto de Carvalho ,&nbsp;Paulo Martins da Costa ,&nbsp;Luísa Peixe ,&nbsp;Patrícia Antunes","doi":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111248","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2025.111248","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Colistin, a last-resort antibiotic in human medicine, has been banned in European food animal production to mitigate antimicrobial resistance. This study investigates the long-term effects of the colistin ban on the occurrence and genomic features (WGS) of colistin-resistant, <em>mcr</em>-carrying <em>Escherichia coli</em> across intensive rabbit farms (8 farms, ~600 animals/farm, fecal and farm environmental samples) in the north and center of Portugal.</div><div>Colistin-resistant <em>E. coli</em> was detected in 25 % of groups from three farms in pre-slaughter fecal samples, with <em>mcr-1</em>-positive strains found throughout the lifecycle (does, offspring, and feed) in all fecal samples from one farm. A polyclonal multidrug-resistant (MDR) <em>E. coli</em> population carrying <em>mcr-1</em> persisted over three years, mostly in pre-slaughter rabbits but also in newly arrived younger does (GP). Comparative genomic analysis (cgMLST) revealed four clusters, with closely related strains between rabbit feces and feed (ST1196, ST40) and between feces and GP (ST1196), suggesting external reservoirs, biosecurity concerns, and cross-contamination. WGS also revealed high load and diversity in virulence (EPEC and ExPEC), antibiotic resistance and genes related to metal decreased susceptibility. All <em>mcr-1</em> genes were located on similar IncHI2 multireplicon plasmids, carrying <em>sil</em> + <em>pco</em> (copper) co-located with antibiotic resistance genes, and circulating in global sources. These results highlight that, despite colistin withdrawal, MDR <em>mcr</em>-carrying <em>E. coli</em> clones persist over three years in a single farm, underscoring complex co-selection pressure and biosecurity gaps. The findings underscore food safety risks via the food chain and environmental contamination. Enhanced biosecurity, feed monitoring, and One Health surveillance are essential to mitigate AMR dissemination and safeguard public health.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14095,"journal":{"name":"International journal of food microbiology","volume":"439 ","pages":"Article 111248"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144067926","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}