Fungal Infection and Presence of Deoxynivalenol and Zearalenone in Cereals Grown in The Netherlands.

In 1991 and 1993 cereals were sampled during harvest in The Netherlands. The samples were tested for the presence of molds and the samples of 1993 were additionally tested for the mycotoxins deoxynivalenol and zearalenone. The molds were identified to genus level and those belonging to the genus Fusarium to species level.

Characteristics of Bacillus cereus related to safe food production.

Thirty Bacillus cereus strains, isolated from different sources, were characterized in relation to safe food production. The minimal growth temperatures of the strains varied from < or = 5 degrees C to 11 degrees C. Generation times at 7 degrees C of strains capable of growing at temperatures < or = 5 degrees C were approximately 8.

Properties of Bacillus cereus spores in reference materials prepared from artificially contaminated spray dried milk.

A reference material for Bacillus cereus was developed based on spray drying of milk artificially contaminated with B. cereus spores. Various properties of the B.

Formation of antigenic extracellular polysaccharides by selected strains of Mucor spp., Rhizopus spp., Rhizomucor spp., Absidia corymbifera and Syncephalastrum racemosum.

In this study, polyclonal IgG antibodies raised against extracellular polysaccharides (EPS) of Mucor racemosus were characterised as almost specific for moulds belonging to the order of Mucorales. Cross-reactivity in the ELISA could be observed only towards the yeast Pichia membranaefaciens. EPS were isolated from various cultures of M.

Successful approach for detection of low numbers of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli in minced meat by using the polymerase chain reaction.

The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used as a tool for the detection of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli in minced meat. With two synthetic 29-mer oligonucleotides, a 195-bp fragment from the E. coli heat-labile enterotoxin (LT) gene could be amplified specifically.