Biomaterial Database

Prevalence of Clostridium botulinum type E in Finnish fish and fishery products. 1998

E Hyytiä, and S Hielm, and H Korkeala

Department of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, Finland.

The prevalence of Clostridium botulinum type E gene in fish and fishery products of commercial importance in Finland was determined using a quantitative PCR analysis. The contamination level in 438 raw fish samples from intestines, surface and whole fish and 208 fish roe samples varied from 10-40% and from 4-14% respectively, depending on the fish species studied. The presence of C. botulinum in European wild freshwater fish and roe was demonstrated for the first time by isolation of the organism from PCR-positive samples. Five percent of 214 vacuum-packed and 3% of 123 air-packed fishery product samples examined at retail level were positive for the botulinum neurotoxin type E gene. A contamination level of 10% in vacuum-packed hot-smoked whitefish was detected. The results demonstrate that C. botulinum type E poses a serious health risk for those consuming fishery products from the Baltic Sea area.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D003014	Clostridium botulinum	A species of anaerobic, gram-positive, rod-shaped bacteria in the family Clostridiaceae that produces proteins with characteristic neurotoxicity. It is the etiologic agent of BOTULISM in humans, wild fowl, HORSES; and CATTLE. Seven subtypes (sometimes called antigenic types, or strains) exist, each producing a different botulinum toxin (BOTULINUM TOXINS). The organism and its spores are widely distributed in nature.
D005396	Fish Products	Food products manufactured from fish (e.g., FISH FLOUR, fish meal).	Fish Product,Product, Fish,Products, Fish
D005399	Fishes	A group of cold-blooded, aquatic vertebrates having gills, fins, a cartilaginous or bony endoskeleton, and elongated bodies covered with scales.
D000818	Animals	Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA.	Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D013696	Temperature	The property of objects that determines the direction of heat flow when they are placed in direct thermal contact. The temperature is the energy of microscopic motions (vibrational and translational) of the particles of atoms.	Temperatures
D015995	Prevalence	The total number of cases of a given disease in a specified population at a designated time. It is differentiated from INCIDENCE, which refers to the number of new cases in the population at a given time.	Period Prevalence,Point Prevalence,Period Prevalences,Point Prevalences,Prevalence, Period,Prevalence, Point,Prevalences