An Overview of Foodborne Sample-Initiated Retrospective Outbreak Investigations and Interagency Collaboration in the United States
Foodborne outbreak investigations have traditionally included the detection of a cluster of illnesses first, followed by an epidemiologic investigation to identify a food of interest. The increasing use of whole genome sequencing (WGS) subtyping technology for clinical, environmental, and food isola...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2023-06-01
|
| Series: | Journal of Food Protection |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0362028X23067613 |
| _version_ | 1827908251846443008 |
|---|---|
| author | Allison Wellman Michael C Bazaco Tyann Blessington Arthur Pightling Asha Dwarka Leslie Hintz Matthew E. Wise Laura Gieraltowski Amanda Conrad Thai-An Nguyen Kelley Hise Stelios Viazis Jennifer Beal |
| author_facet | Allison Wellman Michael C Bazaco Tyann Blessington Arthur Pightling Asha Dwarka Leslie Hintz Matthew E. Wise Laura Gieraltowski Amanda Conrad Thai-An Nguyen Kelley Hise Stelios Viazis Jennifer Beal |
| author_sort | Allison Wellman |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Foodborne outbreak investigations have traditionally included the detection of a cluster of illnesses first, followed by an epidemiologic investigation to identify a food of interest. The increasing use of whole genome sequencing (WGS) subtyping technology for clinical, environmental, and food isolates of foodborne pathogens, and the ability to share and compare the data on public platforms, present new opportunities to identify earlier links between illnesses and their potential sources. We describe a process called sample-initiated retrospective outbreak investigations (SIROIs) used by federal public health and regulatory partners in the United States. SIROIs begin with an evaluation of the genomic similarity between bacterial isolates recovered from food or environmental samples and clusters of clinical isolates while subsequent and parallel epidemiologic and traceback investigations are initiated to corroborate their connection. SIROIs allow for earlier hypothesis generation, followed by targeted collection of information about food exposures and the foods and manufacturer of interest, to confirm a link between the illnesses and their source. This often leads to earlier action that could reduce the breadth and burden of foodborne illness outbreaks. We describe two case studies of recent SIROIs and present the benefits and challenges. Benefits include insight into foodborne illness attribution, international collaboration, and opportunities for enhanced food safety efforts in the food industry. Challenges include resource intensiveness, variability of epidemiologic and traceback data, and an increasingly complex food supply chain. SIROIs are valuable in identifying connections among small numbers of illnesses that may span significant time periods; detecting early signals for larger outbreaks or food safety issues associated with manufacturers; improving our understanding of the scope of contamination of foods; and identifying novel pathogen/commodity pairs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T01:19:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-36b10fac3a664b3584d2d6e74af50e95 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0362-028X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T01:19:17Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Food Protection |
| spelling | doaj.art-36b10fac3a664b3584d2d6e74af50e952023-07-05T05:13:55ZengElsevierJournal of Food Protection0362-028X2023-06-01866100089An Overview of Foodborne Sample-Initiated Retrospective Outbreak Investigations and Interagency Collaboration in the United StatesAllison Wellman0Michael C Bazaco1Tyann Blessington2Arthur Pightling3Asha Dwarka4Leslie Hintz5Matthew E. Wise6Laura Gieraltowski7Amanda Conrad8Thai-An Nguyen9Kelley Hise10Stelios Viazis11Jennifer Beal12Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland, United States; Corresponding author.Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland, United StatesCenter for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland, United StatesCenter for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland, United StatesCenter for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland, United StatesCenter for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland, United StatesCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United StatesCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United StatesCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United StatesCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United StatesCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United StatesCenter for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland, United StatesCenter for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, College Park, Maryland, United StatesFoodborne outbreak investigations have traditionally included the detection of a cluster of illnesses first, followed by an epidemiologic investigation to identify a food of interest. The increasing use of whole genome sequencing (WGS) subtyping technology for clinical, environmental, and food isolates of foodborne pathogens, and the ability to share and compare the data on public platforms, present new opportunities to identify earlier links between illnesses and their potential sources. We describe a process called sample-initiated retrospective outbreak investigations (SIROIs) used by federal public health and regulatory partners in the United States. SIROIs begin with an evaluation of the genomic similarity between bacterial isolates recovered from food or environmental samples and clusters of clinical isolates while subsequent and parallel epidemiologic and traceback investigations are initiated to corroborate their connection. SIROIs allow for earlier hypothesis generation, followed by targeted collection of information about food exposures and the foods and manufacturer of interest, to confirm a link between the illnesses and their source. This often leads to earlier action that could reduce the breadth and burden of foodborne illness outbreaks. We describe two case studies of recent SIROIs and present the benefits and challenges. Benefits include insight into foodborne illness attribution, international collaboration, and opportunities for enhanced food safety efforts in the food industry. Challenges include resource intensiveness, variability of epidemiologic and traceback data, and an increasingly complex food supply chain. SIROIs are valuable in identifying connections among small numbers of illnesses that may span significant time periods; detecting early signals for larger outbreaks or food safety issues associated with manufacturers; improving our understanding of the scope of contamination of foods; and identifying novel pathogen/commodity pairs.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0362028X23067613EpidemiologyFoodborne IllnessOutbreak investigationsWhole Genome Sequencing |
| spellingShingle | Allison Wellman Michael C Bazaco Tyann Blessington Arthur Pightling Asha Dwarka Leslie Hintz Matthew E. Wise Laura Gieraltowski Amanda Conrad Thai-An Nguyen Kelley Hise Stelios Viazis Jennifer Beal An Overview of Foodborne Sample-Initiated Retrospective Outbreak Investigations and Interagency Collaboration in the United States Journal of Food Protection Epidemiology Foodborne Illness Outbreak investigations Whole Genome Sequencing |
| title | An Overview of Foodborne Sample-Initiated Retrospective Outbreak Investigations and Interagency Collaboration in the United States |
| title_full | An Overview of Foodborne Sample-Initiated Retrospective Outbreak Investigations and Interagency Collaboration in the United States |
| title_fullStr | An Overview of Foodborne Sample-Initiated Retrospective Outbreak Investigations and Interagency Collaboration in the United States |
| title_full_unstemmed | An Overview of Foodborne Sample-Initiated Retrospective Outbreak Investigations and Interagency Collaboration in the United States |
| title_short | An Overview of Foodborne Sample-Initiated Retrospective Outbreak Investigations and Interagency Collaboration in the United States |
| title_sort | overview of foodborne sample initiated retrospective outbreak investigations and interagency collaboration in the united states |
| topic | Epidemiology Foodborne Illness Outbreak investigations Whole Genome Sequencing |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0362028X23067613 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT allisonwellman anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT michaelcbazaco anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT tyannblessington anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT arthurpightling anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT ashadwarka anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT lesliehintz anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT matthewewise anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT lauragieraltowski anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT amandaconrad anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT thaiannguyen anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT kelleyhise anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT steliosviazis anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT jenniferbeal anoverviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT allisonwellman overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT michaelcbazaco overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT tyannblessington overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT arthurpightling overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT ashadwarka overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT lesliehintz overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT matthewewise overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT lauragieraltowski overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT amandaconrad overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT thaiannguyen overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT kelleyhise overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT steliosviazis overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates AT jenniferbeal overviewoffoodbornesampleinitiatedretrospectiveoutbreakinvestigationsandinteragencycollaborationintheunitedstates |