Evidence of the internalization of animal calciviruses via the root of growing strawberry plants and dissemination to the fruit
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Date
2015-02
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Applied and Environmental Microbiology
Abstract
Human norovirus (NoV) is the leading cause of foodborne disease in the U.S. and epidemiological studies have shown that fresh produce is one of the major vehicles for the transmission of human NoV. However, the mechanisms of norovirus contamination and persistence in fresh produce are poorly understood. The objective of this study is to determine whether human NoV surrogates, murine norovirus (MNV-1) and Tulane virus (TV), can attach and become internalized and disseminated in strawberries grown in soil. MNV-1 and TV were inoculated to the soil of growing strawberry plants at a level of 108 PFU/plant. Leaves and berries were harvested over a 14 day period and the viral titer was determined by plaque assay. Over the course of the study, 31.6% of the strawberries contained internalized MNV-1 with an average titer of 0.81 ± 0.33 log10 PFU/g. In comparison, 37.5% of strawberries were positive for infectious TV with an average titer of 1.83 ± 0.22 log10 PFU/g. A higher percentage (78.7%) of strawberries were positive for TV RNA with an average titer 3.15 ± 0.51 log10 RNA copies/g as determined RT-qPCR. In contrast, no or little virus internalization and dissemination was detected when TV was inoculated into bell peppers grown in soil. Collectively, this data demonstrates; (i) virally contaminated soils can lead to the internalization of virus via plant roots and subsequent dissemination to the leaf and fruit portions of growing strawberry plants; and (ii) the magnitude of internalization is dependent on the type of virus and plant.
Description
Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (FAES): 3rd Place (The Ohio State University Edward F. Hayes Graduate Research Forum)
Keywords
norovirus, internalization in fresh produce, caliciviruses, strawberries
Citation
DiCaprio E., D. Culbertson, and J. Li. Evidence of the internalization of animal caliciviruses via the root of growing strawberry plants and dissemination to the fruit. 2015. Appl Environ Microbiol. Feb 6. pii: AEM.03867-14. [Epub ahead of print].