@article{ratani_siletzky_dutta_yildirim_osborne_lin_hitchins_ward_kathariou_2012, title={Heavy Metal and Disinfectant Resistance of Listeria monocytogenes from Foods and Food Processing Plants}, volume={78}, ISSN={["0099-2240"]}, DOI={10.1128/aem.01553-12}, abstractNote={ABSTRACT}, number={19}, journal={APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY}, author={Ratani, Shakir S. and Siletzky, Robin M. and Dutta, Vikrant and Yildirim, Suleyman and Osborne, Jason A. and Lin, Wen and Hitchins, Anthony D. and Ward, Todd J. and Kathariou, Sophia}, year={2012}, month={Oct}, pages={6938–6945} } @article{yildirim_elhanafi_lin_hitchins_siletzky_kathariou_2010, title={Conservation of Genomic Localization and Sequence Content of Sau3AI-Like Restriction-Modification Gene Cassettes among Listeria monocytogenes Epidemic Clone I and Selected Strains of Serotype 1/2a}, volume={76}, ISSN={["1098-5336"]}, DOI={10.1128/aem.00648-10}, abstractNote={ABSTRACT}, number={16}, journal={APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY}, author={Yildirim, Suleyman and Elhanafi, Driss and Lin, Wen and Hitchins, Anthony D. and Siletzky, Robin M. and Kathariou, S.}, year={2010}, month={Aug}, pages={5577–5584} } @article{yildirim_lin_hitchins_jaykus_altermann_klaenhammer_kathariou_2004, title={Epidemic clone I-specific genetic markers in strains of Listeria monocytogenes serotype 4b from foods}, volume={70}, ISSN={["1098-5336"]}, DOI={10.1128/AEM.70.7.4158-4164.2004}, abstractNote={ABSTRACT}, number={7}, journal={APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY}, author={Yildirim, S and Lin, W and Hitchins, AD and Jaykus, LA and Altermann, E and Klaenhammer, TR and Kathariou, S}, year={2004}, month={Jul}, pages={4158–4164} } @article{yildirim_lin_hitchins_jaykus_altermann_klaenhammer_kathariou_2004, title={Epidemic clone I-specific genetic markers in strains of Listeria monocytogenes serotype 4b from foods (vol 70, pg 4158, 2004)}, volume={70}, ISSN={["0099-2240"]}, DOI={10.1128/aem.70.12.7581.2004}, abstractNote={Listeria monocytogenes contamination of ready-to-eat foods has been implicated in numerous outbreaks of food-borne listeriosis. However, the health hazards posed by L. monocytogenes detected in foods may vary, and speculations exist that strains actually implicated in illness may constitute only a fraction of those that contaminate foods. In this study, examination of 34 serogroup 4 (putative or confirmed serotype 4b) isolates of L. monocytogenes obtained from various foods and food-processing environments, without known implication in illness, revealed that many of these strains had methylation of cytosines at GATC sites in the genome, rendering their DNA resistant to digestion by the restriction endonuclease Sau3AI. These strains also harbored a gene cassette with putative restriction-modification system genes as well as other, genomically unlinked genetic markers characteristic of the major epidemic-associated lineage of L. monocytogenes (epidemic clone I), implicated in numerous outbreaks in Europe and North America. This may reflect a relatively high fitness of strains with these genetic markers in foods and food-related environments relative to other serotype 4b strains and may partially account for the repeated involvement of such strains in human food-borne listeriosis. Food contamination by Listeria monocytogenes has been implicated in numerous outbreaks and sporadic cases of human illness. Most commonly implicated in listeriosis are highly processed, ready-to-eat (RTE) foods that are kept refrigerated for various periods of time. At risk for listeriosis are people in the extremes of age, pregnant women and their fetuses, cancer patients, and others experiencing immunosuppression (13, 24, 35, 38). Listeriosis can have severe symptoms (septicemia, meningitis, and stillbirths) and a high mortality rate (20 to 30%). Hence, regulations exist in numerous nations concerning the density (e.g., 1 CFU/25 g) of cells of the etiologic agent permissible in RTE foods. Such regulations are based on the hypothesis that any L. monocytogenes strain that can be detected in RTE foods has the potential to pose serious hazards to human health. The potential hazard posed by listerial contamination of RTE foods can be influenced by the number of cells at the point of consumption, which would depend on conditions of storage, type of food matrix and its impact on growth, presence of competing microflora and antimicrobial agents, etc. In addition, the strain type of L. monocytogenes involved may be of importance. It is likely, based on studies with other bacterial pathogens, that some strains and strain clusters (clonal groups) within the species might be more pathogenic than others. Speculations have been formulated that only a fraction of the strains of L. monocytogenes found in foods may be capable of causing human illness (20). There is indeed evidence that the repertoire of strains ca}, number={12}, journal={APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY}, author={Yildirim, S and Lin, W and Hitchins, AD and Jaykus, LA and Altermann, E and Klaenhammer, TR and Kathariou, S}, year={2004}, month={Dec}, pages={7581–7581} } @article{johnson_jinneman_stelma_smith_lye_messer_ulaszek_evsen_gendel_bennett_et al._2004, title={Natural atypical Listeria innocua strains with Listeria monocytogenes pathogenicity island 1 genes}, volume={70}, ISSN={["1098-5336"]}, DOI={10.1128/AEM.70.7.4256-4266.2004}, abstractNote={ABSTRACT}, number={7}, journal={APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY}, author={Johnson, J and Jinneman, K and Stelma, G and Smith, BG and Lye, D and Messer, J and Ulaszek, J and Evsen, L and Gendel, S and Bennett, RW and et al.}, year={2004}, month={Jul}, pages={4256–4266} }