Chapter 4 - Foodborne intoxications and toxicoinfections in the Middle East

Abstract

Among the major types of bacterial food poisoning are foodborne intoxications, which refer to the diseases caused by ingestion of already preformed toxins in the food by microorganisms, including Staphylococcus spp., Bacillus cereus (vomiting or emetic type), and Clostridium botulinum. Foodborne toxicoinfection is another type of food poisoning that occurs due to ingestion of large numbers of the pathogenic bacteria that are able to release their toxins in the gastrointestinal tracts. Bacteria such as Clostridium perfringens, B. cereus (diarrheal type), enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli, Aeromonas hydrophila, Plesiomonas shigelloides, and Vibrio cholerae are involved in foodborne toxicoinfections. In this chapter, we will focus on five pathogens including Staphylococcus aureus, B. cereus (emetic type), and C. botulinum as these are of the most widely known bacteria, involved in foodborne intoxications, and C. perfringens, B. cereus, and E. coli O157:H7 as bacteria involved in foodborne toxicoinfection. We will throw the light on the general characteristics of the bacteria, pathogenicity and symptoms, their prevalence and recorded outbreaks in the Arabic speaking countries of the Middle East, and finally the recommended preventive and control measures will be briefly outlined.