Gamma irradiation is a nonthermal processing technology that has been used for the preservation of a variety of food products. This technology has been shown to effectively inactivate bacterial pathogens. Currently, the FDA has approved doses of up to 4.0 kGy to control food-borne pathogens in fresh iceberg lettuce and spinach. However, whether this dose range effectively inactivates food-borne viruses is less understood. We have performed a systematic study on the inactivation of a human norovirus surrogate (murine norovirus 1 [MNV-1]), human norovirus virus-like particles (VLPs), and vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) by gamma irradiation. We demonstrated that MNV-1 and human norovirus VLPs were resistant to gamma irradiation. For MNV-1, only a 1.7-to 2.4-log virus reduction in fresh produce at the dose of 5.6 kGy was observed. However, VSV was more susceptible to gamma irradiation, and a 3.3-log virus reduction at a dose of 5.6 kGy in Dulbecco's modified Eagle medium (DMEM) was achieved. We further demonstrated that gamma irradiation disrupted virion structure and degraded viral proteins and genomic RNA, which resulted in virus inactivation. Using human norovirus VLPs as a model, we provide the first evidence that the capsid of human norovirus has stability similar to that of MNV-1 after exposure to gamma irradiation. Overall, our results suggest that viruses are much more resistant to irradiation than bacterial pathogens. Although gamma irradiation used to eliminate the virus contaminants in fresh produce by the FDA-approved irradiation dose limits seems impractical, this technology may be practical to inactivate viruses for other purposes, such as sterilization of medical equipment.
Human norovirus (HuNoV) is the leading causative agent of foodborne disease outbreaks worldwide. HuNoV is highly stable, contagious, and only a few virus particles can cause illness. However, HuNoV is difficult to study because of the lack of an efficient in vitro cell culture system or a small animal model. To date, there is very limited information available about the biology of HuNoV, with most data coming from the study of surrogates, such as HuNoV virus-like particle (VLP), murine norovirus (MNV), and feline calicivirus (FCV). High-risk foods for HuNoV contamination include seafood, fresh produce, and ready-to-eat foods. Currently, there is no effective measure to control HuNoV outbreaks; thus, development of food-processing technologies to inactivate HuNoV in these high-risk foods is urgently needed. Although a VLP-based vaccine induces humoral, mucosal, and cellular immunities in animals and currently is in human clinical trials, development of other new vaccine candidates, such as live vectored vaccines, should be considered. Recent evidence suggests that blockage of virus-receptor interaction may be a promising antiviral target. To enhance our capability to combat this important agent, there is an urgent need to develop multidisciplinary, multi-institutional integrated research and to implement food virology education and extension programs nationwide.
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