Design and Elementary Evaluation of a Highly-Automated Fluorescence-Based Instrument System for On-Site Detection of Food-Borne Pathogens.

Zhan Lu,Siyu Chen,Yanbin Li,Zunzhong Ye,Jianyi Zhang,Jianping Wang,Lizhou Xu

doi:10.3390/s17030442

Abstract

A simple, highly-automated instrument system used for on-site detection of foodborne pathogens based on fluorescence was designed, fabricated, and preliminarily tested in this paper. A corresponding method has been proved effective in our previous studies. This system utilizes a light-emitting diode (LED) to excite fluorescent labels and a spectrometer to record the fluorescence signal from samples. A rotation stage for positioning and switching samples was innovatively designed for high-throughput detection, ten at most in one single run. We also developed software based on LabVIEW for data receiving, processing, and the control of the whole system. In the test of using a pure quantum dot (QD) solution as a standard sample, detection results from this home-made system were highly-relevant with that from a well-commercialized product and even slightly better reproducibility was found. And in the test of three typical kinds of food-borne pathogens, fluorescence signals recorded by this system are highly proportional to the variation of the sample concentration, with a satisfied limit of detection (LOD) (nearly 102–103 CFU·mL−1 in food samples). Additionally, this instrument system is low-cost and easy-to-use, showing a promising potential for on-site rapid detection of food-borne pathogens.

Highlights

Food safety is one of the major health concerns that severely threatens human health and could lead to tremendous loss in society
E. coli (EHEC) contamination of sprouts in Germany in 2011, a Listeria monocytogenes outbreak in cantaloupe melons in the United States in 2012 [4], and Salmonella infection in Europe in 2012 where
We have presented a novel, highly-automated instrument prototype for rapid and high-throughput detection of pathogens on the spot based on fluorescence detection

Summary

Introduction

Food safety is one of the major health concerns that severely threatens human health and could lead to tremendous loss in society. Food-borne infections in the United States alone have been estimated to cause ~76 million illnesses, more than 300,000 hospitalizations and 5000 deaths each year [1]. Food contamination could result in a loss of 25% of food produced every year [2]. Bacterial pathogens, such as Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella, Campylobacter jejuni, and Listeria monocytogenes, are the leading causes of these bacterial foodborne illnesses [3]. E. coli (EHEC) contamination of sprouts in Germany in 2011, a Listeria monocytogenes outbreak in cantaloupe melons in the United States in 2012 [4], and Salmonella infection in Europe in 2012 where.

Results

Discussion

Conclusion