Soil Conditions That Can Alter Natural Suppression of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Ohio Specialty Crop Soils.

ABSTRACT: Food-borne pathogen persistence in soil fundamentally affects the production of safe vegetables and small fruits. Interventions that reduce pathogen survival in soil would have positive impacts on food safety by minimizing preharvest contamination entering the food chain. Laboratory-controlled studies determined the effects of soil pH, moisture content, and soil organic matter (SOM) on the survivability of this pathogen through the creation of single-parameter gradients. Longitudinal field-based studies were conducted in Ohio to quantify the extent to which field soils suppressed Escherichia coli O157:H7 survival. In all experiments, heat-sensitive microorganisms were responsible for the suppression of E. coli O157 in soil regardless of the chemical composition of the soil. In laboratory-b

SUBMITTER: Williams ML 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4551184 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature