Food Safety Risks and Contributing Factors of Cronobacter spp.
Na Ling,
Xiuting Jiang,
Stephen Forsythe,
Danfeng Zhang,
Yizhong Shen,
Yu Ding,
Juan Wang,
Jumei Zhang,
Qingping Wu,
Yingwang Ye
Affiliations
Na Ling
School of Food and Biological Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Culture Collection and Application, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Guangdong Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Xiuting Jiang
School of Food and Biological Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China
Stephen Forsythe
Foodmicrobe.com, Keyworth NG12 5GY, UK
Danfeng Zhang
School of Food and Biological Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China
Yizhong Shen
School of Food and Biological Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China
Yu Ding
Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Culture Collection and Application, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Guangdong Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Juan Wang
Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Culture Collection and Application, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Guangdong Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Jumei Zhang
Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Culture Collection and Application, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Guangdong Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Qingping Wu
Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Culture Collection and Application, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Guangdong Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China; Corresponding authors.
Yingwang Ye
School of Food and Biological Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Culture Collection and Application, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Guangdong Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China; Corresponding authors.
Cronobacter species are a group of Gram-negative opportunistic pathogens, which cause meningitis, septicemia, and necrotizing enterocolitis in neonates and infants, with neurological sequelae in severe cases. Interest in Cronobacter has increased significantly in recent years due to its high virulence in children. In this review, we summarize the current understanding of the prevalence of Cronobacter species in several important food types. We discuss the response mechanisms enabling persistence in adverse growth conditions, as well as its pathogenicity. We emphasize the food safety concerns caused by Cronobacter and subsequent control methods and clinical treatments.
