Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcal Food-Borne Disease: An Ongoing Challenge in Public Health

Staphylococcal food-borne disease (SFD) is one of the most common food-borne diseases worldwide resulting from the contamination of food by preformed S. aureus enterotoxins. It is one of the most common causes of reported food-borne diseases in the United States. Although several Staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) have been identified, SEA, a highly heat-stable SE, is the most common cause of SFD worldwide. Outbreak investigations have found that improper food handling practices in the retail industry account for the majority of SFD outbreaks. However, several studies have documented prevalence of S. aureus in many food products including raw retail meat indicating that consumers are at potential risk of S.…

• UD
  U.S. Department of Agriculture

  Award: 2011-67005-30337
• NI
  National Institute of Food and Agriculture

  Award: 2011-67005-30337