Cornell creates national atlas for deadly food pathogens

This work can serve as a reference for future population genomics studies

Cornell food scientists have recently investigated that among the deadliest of foodborne pathogens, Listeria monocytogenes soon may become easier to track down in food recalls and other investigations.

According to research, the national atlas will tell scientists where listeria and other related species reside within the contiguous United States, which could help them trace and pinpoint sources of listeria found in ingredients, food processing facilities and finished products.

“As we’re trying to figure out the risk of getting listeria from soil and different locations, our group created a more systematic way of assessing how frequently different listeria are found in different locations,” said senior author Martin Wiedmann, PhD ’97, the Gellert Family Professor in Food Safety and Food Science in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

Knowing that listeria occurs naturally in soil, the Cornell group asked hundreds of other scientists across the country to scoop up soil samples from generally undisturbed places in the natural world, such as the off-trail areas of state and national parks.

From these samples, the group developed a nationwide atlas of 1,854 listeria isolates, representing 594 strains and 12 families of the bacteria called phylogroups.

This work can serve as a reference for future population genomics studies and will likely benefit the food industry by locating listeria contaminations that may have a natural origin.