Food-contaminating Salmonella bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics can be deactivated instead by a virus that is naturally present in the environment, Chinese researchers say.
The virus, called bacteriophage W5, "functions like a precision-guided missile, capable of eliminating harmful Salmonella on various foods and packaging materials, showing great potential as a novel guardian for food safety," study leader Huitian Gou from the College of Veterinary Medicine, Gansu Agricultural University in Lanzhou said in a statement.
Salmonella is responsible for 1.35 million infections, 26,500 hospitalizations, and 420 deaths in the United States alone each year, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates.
In lab tests, W5 reduced Salmonella and disrupted biofilms on milk, meat, eggs and on food-contact surfaces under realistic storage conditions, according to a report published in Applied and Environmental Microbiology.
As a natural biological entity, phage W5 offers a "green" solution for decontamination, leaving no harmful chemical residues on food or in the environment, the researchers said.
They say their findings open a new pathway for using bacteriophages to combat antibiotic resistance and enhance food safety.
The researchers envision several possible decontamination options for W5 along the food supply chain, "for instance, as a feed additive in livestock farming, a surface disinfectant in meat processing plants, or even a preservative spray for fresh produce at the consumption end," Gou said.
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