ABSTRACT

Listeria monocytogenes contamination in fruits and vegetables has become an increasing cause for concern in recent years. Fruits and vegetables are considered to be a source of high nutrient value as a result of which their consumption as raw natural food in the form of salads and RTE food has been increasing. However, Listeria monocytogenes, a food-borne pathogen associated with them, has been known to cause serious listeriosis infection, with symptoms of varying severity such as fever, headache, tiredness, gastroenteritis, septicaemia, meningitis and even lead to abortion or stillbirth in pregnant women. This review article aims to provide collective data on the prevalence of Listeria spp. in fruits and vegetables. It also discusses different sources of contamination of fruits and vegetables and pathogenesis of L. monocytogenes leading to listeriosis infection in humans. Listeria monocytogenes has ability to cross different host barriers like placental, intestinal and blood-brain barrier. Being a psychrotrophic microorganism, Listeria grows and survives at low temperatures. Therefore, presence of L. monocytogenes may pose risk of food borne illnesses from consumption of raw or minimally processed fruits and vegetables. This review also provides an inventory of the current data on Listeria monocytogenes causing listeriosis outbreaks, some of them leading to major recalls of the produce. It is virtually impossible to get rid of Listeria monocytogenes from food environment because of its ubiquitous presence. Hence, there is a need to actively manage the elimination and exclusion of this organism. Keywords: Listeria monocytogenes, Listeriosis outbreaks, Pathogenesis of Listeria monocytogenes, Prevalence in fruits and vegetables
Publication date: 15/01/2022

https://ijbpas.com/pdf/2022/January/MS_IJBPAS_2022_JAN_SPCL_1028.pdf

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https://doi.org/10.31032/IJBPAS/2022/11.1.1028