Commercially acquired a çaí pulps contamination by Trypanosoma cruzi

Int J Food Microbiol. 2021 Dec 24;363:109508. doi: 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2021.109508. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTThe etiological agent of Chagas disease is the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi. According to the World Health Organization, about seven to eight million people are infected with T. cruzi worldwide. The main routes of transmission are vectorial and oral, which has assumed great epidemiological importance, since there is no legislation that requires the pasteurization of açaí pulp. The present work aimed to look T. cruzi in 35 samples of açaí ice cream sold at different points of sale, covering 11 different cities in São Paulo State. Thus, the parasitological technique of forced sieving and the molecular test of Polymerase Chain Reaction were performed. For PCR analysis were used the 121/122 primer that amplifies the kinetoplast of the T. cruzi DNA (kDNA). By the forced sieving technique, the açaí pulp aliquots were analyzed under different storage temperatures and in different periods. One positive sample (2.86%) were observed at six hours at room temperature, but without motility and negative to the PCR technique. Two other açaí samples (5.71%) were positive by PCR, but negative by forced sieving. The results indicate the need for quality control and good manufacturing practices for the safe consumption of açaí-derived products.PMID:34971879 | DOI:10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2021.109508

Source: International Journal of Food Microbiology - December 31, 2021 Category: Food Science Authors: Diana Zapparoli Thain á Valente Bertozzo Marcela Alexandrino Daniela Filadelfo Sanches Isabella Neves Aires Suzane Manzini Maria Izabel Merino de Medeiros Cilmery Suemi Kurokawa Rodrigo Mattos Dos Santos Simone Baldini Lucheis Source Type: research