Author
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Novak, John |
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Submitted to: American Chemical Society Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 5/20/2004 Publication Date: 8/23/2004 Citation: Novak, J.S. 2004. Quorum sensing and food safety. American Chemical Society Abstracts. Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Bacteria use various cell-to-cell signaling mechanisms to control the expression of characteristic survival traits in a density dependent manner, which is designated 'quorum sensing'. It is generally recognized that regulating such extracellular communication in microorganisms including those that cause food-borne disease could lead to a safer food supply. Although historically, autoinducing chemical molecules were first described in a marine symbiont, nearly all microorganisms have since been found to have some kind of signaling system for the transcriptional regulation of genes. The production or activity of the chemical signals can be monitored through multiple coupled reporter assays relying on bioluminescence, detection of expressed promoter-colorimetric enzyme assay gene fusions, cloned fluorescent green protein detection systems, and mutational complementations. The identification of species-specific signals enables the competitive inhibition of quorum sensing in pathogens in or on food using natural or synthetic signal analogues. The chemical complexities of food environments offer challenges to detection, identification, and control of such signaling processes with respect to food-borne bacteria. |
