Volume 43, Issue 2 e12906
INVITED REVIEW

Bacteriophages for detection and control of foodborne bacterial pathogens—The case of Bacillus cereus and their phages

Haftom Baraki Abraha

Haftom Baraki Abraha

Department of Food Science and Technology, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, Republic of Korea

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Kwang-Pyo Kim

Kwang-Pyo Kim

Department of Food Science and Technology, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, Republic of Korea

Department of Agricultural Convergence Technology, Collage of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, Republic of Korea

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Desta Berhe Sbhatu

Corresponding Author

Desta Berhe Sbhatu

Department of Biological and Chemical Engineering, Mekelle Institute of Technology, Mekelle University, Mekelle, Ethiopia

Correspondence

Desta Berhe Sbhatu, Department of Biological and Chemical Engineering, Mekelle Institute of Technology, Mekelle University, PO Box 1632, Mekelle, Ethiopia.

Email: [email protected]

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First published: 05 May 2021
Citations: 2

Abstract

Bacillus cereus is among the primary food-poisoning pathogenic bacterium that causes diarrhea and emetic types of diseases throughout the world. Recent advances show that bacteriophages become important tools in detection and control of foodborne bacterial pathogens in foods. They gain the interest of researchers for the food industries mainly because they are host-specific and harmless to humans. Studies showed that bacteriophages could be employed as natural or engineered, whole or part, and temperate or virulent type in designing a range of tools for the detection and control of foodborne bacterial pathogens. This article discusses the recent methods and advances in the utilization strategies of bacteriophages in detection and control of foodborne pathogens, with particular focus on B. cereus pathogen. Moreover, the article presents the latest and relevant information of B. cereus-infecting phages with respect to their potential applications in foods to address food safety issues. It also reflects future research directions by indicating gap of studies on the area.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the first author upon reasonable request.

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