During machine milking, pathogenic microorganisms can be transmitted from cow to cow through liners. Therefore, in Germany, a spray method for the intermediate disinfection of the milking cluster is often used for prevention. This method of cluster d...
Food contact surfaces can be a source of food contamination. Bacteria of the genus Proteus are known as opportunistic pathogens, often associated with faecal contamination and decomposition of organic matter. This study aimed to isolate Proteus spp....
The sampling approach is of utmost importance to obtain data regarding microbial viability and truly assess workers’ potential health effects. The purpose of this assessment is to create a score which will provide up-to-date information to iden...
1 October 2022
Surface sampling is a frequent task in laboratory work and field studies. Simple methods usually have low efficiency in collecting target substances from surfaces. This study developed an advanced tape-stripping approach for efficient sampling on non...
In this study, the intrinsic surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS)-based approach coupled with chemometric analysis was adopted to establish the biochemical fingerprint of SARS-CoV-2 infected human fluids: saliva and nasopharyngeal swabs. The nu...
8 January 2014
Listeria monocytogenes can adhere to different types of food contact surfaces within a food processing environment. Therefore, environmental sampling devices should be capable of detecting unacceptable contamination. In this study, a sponge-stick, f...
Effective environmental monitoring is critical for preventing microbial and allergenic cross-contamination. However, manual swabbing methods, commonly used to verify hygienic conditions, are prone to inconsistent results because of variability in pre...
In recent years, the development of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrates has seen significant advancement. In this research, we successfully fabricated cotton swab-based SERS substrates using a facile solution-based method. Our SERS...
It is both important and required to quickly and accurately detect chemical warfare agents, such as the highly toxic nerve agent sarin. Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has received considerable attention due to its rapid results, high sensit...
This prospective study aimed to evaluate the performance of the InstaView COVID-19 (coronavirus diseases 2019) Antigen Home Test (InstaView AHT) which detects severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antigens. In this test kit, su...
Direct analysis in real time (DART) is a recently developed ambient ionization technique for mass spectrometry to enable rapid and sensitive analyses with little or no sample preparation. After swab-based field sampling, the organothiophosphate malat...
The development of high-quality flexible surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrates is crucial for developing rapid SERS analysis in situ. Silver nanowire membranes as novel flexible substrates could benefit from the high collection effici...
3D-printed nasopharyngeal swabs for medical sample collection have been manufactured via additive manufacturing (AM), evaluated, and characterized in the present study. A multi-part component of nasopharyngeal swabs was proposed, in which the swab an...
As an important sort of dithiocarbamate bactericide, thiram has been widely used for fruits, vegetables and mature crops to control various fungal diseases; however, the thiram residues in the environment pose a serious threat to human health. In thi...
The vast quantity and high variety of pesticides globally used in agriculture entails considerable risks for the environment and requires ensuring the safety of food products. Therefore, powerful analytical tools are needed to acquire qualitative and...
This study examined the prevalence, distribution, and detection methods linked to Treponema species associated with active bovine digital dermatitis (BDD) in dairy cattle. Tissue, surface swabs, interdigital space swabs, and faecal samples were colle...
Background: The aim of this study is to determine which types of microorganisms influence the onset and development of colorectal cancer (CRC) in humans. Methods: In patients with CRC, three swabs were taken for microbiological analysis during surgic...
The presence of potentially pathogenic bacteria on veterinary clinic surfaces may be problematic. In this study, we collected swab samples (Fisherbrand, double transport swabs with Stuart’s liquid medium) and water samples from five veterinary...
Keratitis, an inflammatory disease of the eye, when neglected could lead to sight-threatening complications and ultimately blindness. Globally, over a million people are affected by keratitis annually. Keratitis has a microbial etiology and is caused...
Background: Swabbing of implants removed from potentially infected sites represents a time saving and ubiquitously applicable alternative to sonication approaches. The latter bears an elevated risk of processing related contaminations due to the high...
Introduction: This study aimed to isolate bacterial pathogens from the dominant hand and mobile phones and to determine their antibiotic susceptibility profiles. The dominant hand and mobile surfaces were swabbed to detect the transmission of bacteri...
L. monocytogenes is a public health threat linked to fast foods such as broiler chickens. This study aimed to verify the occurrence of Listeria species in chickens from abattoirs and evaluate their antimicrobial resistance. In total, 150 broiler carc...
In forensic veterinary investigations of suspicious animal deaths involving loss of body parts, it is essential to determine whether the wounds were caused by human intervention or by other animals. Detailed postmortem examination of the wounds, comb...
This study investigates the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in conjunctival secretions and tears and evaluates ocular symptoms in a group of patients with COVID-19. We included 56 hospitalized patients with COVID-19 in this cross-sectional cohort study. Conju...
Surveillance of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in the environment is crucial for reducing its transmission, particularly in hospitals, nursing homes, and high-contact public areas. Rapid Point-of-Need (PON) tools at healthcare fac...
The role of environmental transmission of SARS-CoV-2 remains unclear. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate whether viral contamination of air, wastewater, and surfaces in quarantined households result in a higher risk for exposed persons. F...
Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Staphylococcus aureus are common pathogens. Gram-negative bacteria, such as E. coli, contain high concentrations of endogenous peroxidases, whereas Gram-positive bacteria, such as S. aureus, possess abundant endogenous ca...
Background: Burn patients are susceptible to healthcare-associated infections. Contaminated surfaces play a role in microbial transmission. This study aimed to quantify the degree of contamination of burns theatre fomites during routine clinical use....
Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL-E) among animals and humans are a public health threat. This study analyzed the occurrence of ESBL-E in a high-risk environment in a companion animal clinic and two animal patients’...
Apples are the most consumed fruit in the United States and have recently been shown to exhibit some vulnerability to contamination across the supply chain. It is unclear what role a fruit microbiome analysis may serve in future food safety programs...
This study assessed the viable and culturable microbial diversity that remained on equipment surfaces after hygiene procedures in Brazilian poultry and fish slaughterhouses. Food-contact surface samples were collected using sterile swabs in poultry (...
The quantitative analysis of biofilm can be used not only to assess the microbiological stability of tap water but also on its basis can assess: the degree of colonization of materials by bacterial cells, the rate of biofilm formation on the surfaces...
12 May 2020
Background: Contamination with oral commensals and pathogenic microorganisms, and cross contamination between clinic and laboratory can occur. The amount of contamination has not been determined. Methods: Samples from different clinical and laborator...
The microbiome of the ocular surface has been characterised, but only limited information is available on a possible silent intraocular microbial colonisation in normal eyes. Therefore, we performed next-generation sequencing (NGS) of 16S rDNA genes...
12 October 2018
The main aim of our study was to verify the effectiveness of simple disinfection using wet wipes for reduction of microbial contamination of mobile phones and computer keyboards. Bacteriological swabs were taken before and after disinfection with dis...
Microbiome analyses are essential for understanding microorganism composition and diversity, but interpretation is often challenging due to biological and technical variables. DNA extraction is a critical step that can significantly bias results, par...
21 March 2021
A Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by a new virus called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), spreads via direct contact through droplets produced by infected individuals. The transmission of this virus can also occur v...
2 August 2021
SARS-CoV-2 transmission from contaminated surfaces, or fomites, has been a concern during the COVID-19 pandemic. Households have been important sites of transmission throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but there is limited information on SARS-CoV-2 con...
The influence of solvent properties on ion generation by swab spray ionization was investigated. The ability of a variety of solvents of different relative permittivity, surface tension, and viscosity to form a stable and reproducible electrospray wa...
Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a waterborne and foodborne pathogen largely spread around the world. HEV is responsible for acute hepatitis in humans and it is also diffused in domestic and wild animals. In particular, domestic pigs represent the main res...
Listeria monocytogenes is considered a highly persistent risk for public health in food production facilities. Food business operators manufacturing ready-to-eat foods (RTE) are required to sample processing areas for L. monocytogenes as part of thei...
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) disease has been described to possibly be associated with ocular surface disturbances. However, whether the virus could invade ocular tissues still remains elusive. In the present study, we...
Background: Companion animal clinics contribute to the spread of antimicrobial resistant microorganisms (ARM) and outbreaks with ARM of public health concern have been described. Methods: As part of a project to assess infection prevention and contro...
16 September 2022
Lead levels at a new indoor target shooting range were assessed using both personal and environmental air monitoring methods. Surface swabs were collected from representative locations throughout the range prior to, and at the conclusion of, shooting...
This study aims to identify two critical components required for pharmaceutical cleaning verification when an FTIR is used: (a) the number of scans required per hard-to-clean location, and (b) the limit of quantification (LOQ) of the FTIR instrument...
Background: Tonsillitis is an inflammation of the tonsils due to either viruses or bacteria. Here, we report the bacteria patterns on the tonsillar surface and tonsillar core tissue among patients scheduled for tonsillectomy at Bugando Medical Centre...
Background: Burn patients are highly susceptible to hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), and contaminated near-patient surfaces can act as reservoirs for multidrug-resistant organisms (MROs). Ultraviolet-C (UV-C) room disinfection is increasingly use...
Background: Equid alphaherpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) is a highly contagious respiratory tract pathogen of horses, and infection may be followed by myeloencephalopathy or abortion. Surveillance and early detection have focused on PCR assays using less tolerat...
A new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) caused the current coronavirus disease (Covid-19) epidemic. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is used as the gold standard for clinical detection of SARS-CoV-2. Under ideal condition...
Background: Mobile phones are excessively used even though microbes’ ability to survive on phone surfaces was confirmed. During the COVID-19 pandemic, heavy hygiene practices have been applied to mobile surfaces. Therefore, it is interesting to...
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