New Elements To Consider When Modeling the Hazards Associated with Botulinum Neurotoxin in Food
Abstract
Botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs) produced by the anaerobic bacterium Clostridium botulinum are the most potent biological substances known to mankind. BoNTs are the agents responsible for botulism, a rare condition affecting the neuromuscular junction and causing a spectrum of diseases ranging from mild cranial nerve palsies to acute respiratory failure and death. BoNTs are a potential biowarfare threat and a public health hazard, since outbreaks of foodborne botulism are caused by the ingestion of preformed BoNTs in food. Currently, mathematical models relating to the hazards associated with C. botulinum, which are largely empirical, make major contributions to botulinum risk assessment. Evaluated using statistical techniques, these models simulate the response of the bacterium to environmental conditions. Though empirical models have been successfully incorporated into risk assessments to support food safety decision making, this process includes significant uncertainties so that relevant decision making is frequently conservative and inflexible. Progression involves encoding into the models cellular processes at a molecular level, especially the details of the genetic and molecular machinery. This addition drives the connection...Continue Reading
References
A novel subunit structure of Clostridium botulinum serotype D toxin complex with three extended arms
Independent evolution of neurotoxin and flagellar genetic loci in proteolytic Clostridium botulinum.
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Botulism (ASM)
Botulism is a rare but serious paralytic illness caused by a nerve toxin that is produced by the bacterium clostridium botulinum. Discover the latest research on botulism here.
Botulism
Botulism is a rare but serious paralytic illness caused by a nerve toxin that is produced by the bacterium clostridium botulinum. Discover the latest research on botulism here.