Biofilms are predominant mode of life for microbes under natural conditions. The three-dimensional structure of the biofilm provides enhanced protection from physical, chemical and biological stress conditions to associated microbial communities. These complex and highly structured microbial communities play a vital role in maintaining the health of plants, soils and waters. Biofilm associated with plants may be pathogenic or beneficial based on the nature of their interactions. Pathogenic or undesirable biofilm requires control in many situations, including soil, plants, food and water. Written by leading experts from around the world, Biofilms in Plant and Soil Health provides an up-to-date review on various aspects of microbial biofilms, and suggests future and emerging trends in biofilms in plant and soil health. Issues are addressed in four sub areas: I) The fundamentals and significance of biofilm in plant and soil health, and the concept of mono and mixed biofilms by PGPR and fungal biofilms. II) Biochemical and molecular mechanisms in biofilm studies in plant associated bacteria, and techniques in studying biofilms and their characterization, gene expression and enhanced antimicrobial resistance in biofilms, as well as biotic and biotic factors affecting biofilm in vitro. III) The ecological significance of soil associated biofilms and stress management and bioremediation of contaminated soils and degraded ecosystems. IV) Pathogenic biofilm associated with plant and food and its control measures. This book is recommended for students and researchers working in agricultural and environmental microbiology, biotechnology, soil sciences, soil and plant health and plant protection. Researchers working in the area of quorum sensing, biofilm applications, and understanding microbiome of soil and plants will also find it useful.

The book illustrates the role of quorum sensing in the food industry, agriculture, veterinary sciences, and medicine. It highlights the importance of quorum sensing in regulating diverse cellular functions in microbes, including virulence, pathogenesis, controlled-gene expression systems, and antibiotic resistance. This book also describes the role of quorum sensing in survival behavior and antibiotic resistance in bacteria. Further, it reviews the major role played by quorum sensing in food spoilage, biofilm formation, and food-related pathogenesis. It also explores the methods for the detection and quantification of quorum sensing signals. It also presents antimicrobial and anti-quorum sensing activities of medicinal plants. Finally, the book elucidates a comprehensive yet representative description of basic and applied aspects of quorum sensing inhibitors. This book serves an ideal guide for researchers to understand the implications of quorum sensing in the food industry, medicine, and agriculture.

The book on Trends in Quorum Sensing and Quorum Quenching: New Perspectives and Applications focuses on the recent advances in the field of quorum sensing in bacteria and the novel strategies developed for quorum sensing inhibition. The topics covered are multidisciplinary and wide-ranging,and includes quorum sensing phenomenon in pathogenic bacteria, food spoilers, and agriculturally relevant bacteria. The applications of quorum sensing inhibitors such as small molecules, bioactives, natural compounds, and quorum quenching enzymes in controlling bacterial infections in clinical settings, agriculture and aquaculture are discussed. The potential use of quorum quenching enzymes for mitigating biofouling is also covered. Special focus is given to exploring quorum sensing inhibitors from microbes and flora inhabiting biodiversity rich regions including tropical rain forests and marine environments. Key features: Covers the fundamental aspects, the progress and challenges in the field of quorum sensing and quorum quenching Reviews quorum sensing in Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria of clinical, agricultural, and industrial relevance Discusses the application and future trends of quorum sensing inhibitors from lab to clinical and environmental settings Provides comprehensive coverage on molecular mechanisms in bacterial signaling

Bacterial biofilm is a complex structure with diverse bacterial cells in a highly organized and ordered group within a matrix of extracellular polymeric substances they produce. Microbes attach to surfaces to develop biofilms, a sophisticated process regulated by factors such as nutritional status and biotic/abiotic surface features. An established biofilm structure mainly comprises bacterial cells, proteins, nucleic acid, and exo-polysaccharides that are extracellular macromolecules excreted as tightly bound layers in microbes, providing a perfect niche for bacteria to exchange genetic material between cells. In addition, bacterial cells in the matrix also communicate via quorum sensing, which greatly impacts biofilm processes. Under clinical circumstances, bacterial biofilm shows great resistance to antibiotics, disinfectants, and body defense systems, making it difficult for clinicians to eradicate and facilitate many infectious disease processes, leading to chronic infections of patients with long-term hospitalization and high mortality rates. Therefore, it is very important to understand the recent advances in forming, regulating, and eradicating biofilms in human infections to better prevent, control, and treat biofilm infections in humans. Written by an international team of basic and clinical researchers, the chapters of this book provide novel insights and advanced knowledge for life science researchers, clinical researchers, doctors, and other interested readers on some of the latest developments in biofilms.

This book primarily covers the general description of foodborne pathogens and their mechanisms of pathogenesis, control and prevention, and detection strategies, with easy-to-comprehend illustrations. The book is an essential resource for food microbiology graduate or undergraduate students, microbiology professionals, and academicians involved in food microbiology, food safety, and food defense-related research or teaching. This new edition covers the significant progress that has been made since 2008 in understanding the pathogenic mechanism of some common foodborne pathogens, and the host-pathogen interaction. Foodborne and food-associated zoonotic pathogens, responsible for high rates of mortality and morbidity, are discussed in detail. Chapters on foodborne viruses, parasites, molds and mycotoxins, and fish and shellfish are expanded. Additionally, chapters on opportunistic and emerging foodborne pathogens including Nipah virus, Ebola virus, Aeromonas hydrophila, Brucella abortus, Clostridium difficile, Cronobacter sakazakii, and Plesiomonas shigelloides have been added. The second edition contains more line drawings, color photographs, and hand-drawn illustrations.

Foodborne Diseases, Volume Fifteen, is the latest release in the Handbook of Bioengineering series. This volume covers the ever-changing complex issues that have emerged in the food industry over the past decade. This is a solid reference with broad coverage to provide a foundation for a practical understanding of diseases and related industrial applications. It will help researchers and scientists manage foodborne diseases and prevent and control outbreaks. The book provides information on the most common and classical foodborne diseases, their emergence and inquiries, along with the most investigated and successful strategies developed to combat these health-threatening conditions. - Identifies the advances in biotechnology, emerging technologies, food safety and quality control that impact foodborne diseases - Explores advances in vaccines to fight foodborne illness - Addresses Campylobacter, Listeria, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, Vibrio and Helicobacter - Discusses biosensor based methods for determining foodborne pathogens - Includes molecular typing of major foodborne pathogens

Food is the first necessity for humans to survive with huge amounts of food consumed daily worldwide. Globalization of food industry results in an increasingly complex food chain, making food safety a universal issue. Many millions of people in the world become sick while hundreds of thousand die annually due to consumption of contaminated food. Pathogenic bacteria contaminate food at any stages in the food chain, including production, processing, supplying, and storage. The most commonly known bacterial pathogens associated with human foodborne diseases worldwide are Salmonella enterica, Campylobacter jejuni, Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Cronobacter sakazakii, Vibrio cholerae, and Vibrio parahaemolyticus. This eBook includes publications on recent discoveries in genetic diversity, prevalence, resistance and novel transmission vectors; molecular mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis; and new compounds and treatment strategies for better control of the human foodborne pathogenic bacteria. The information in the articles supports the urgent need for improving food safety and public health, particularly in globalization background.

Foodborne microorganisms play a pivotal role in mediating the tight relation between food and human health from a dual perspective. In fact, notwithstanding the introduction of strict regulations and new technologies to ensure food quality and safety, foodborne pathogens continue to cause infections and diseases and represent a serious public health concern, while spoilage bacteria can severely affect food quality thus leading to major industry and commercial losses. On the other hand, probiotics positively affect human health, promoting digestion and uptake of dietary nutrients, strengthening intestinal barrier function, modulating immune response and enhancing antagonism towards pathogens. Nowadays, proteomics represents a key discipline to perform high-throughput studies in the field of food microbiology and enables the most accurate identification of complex networks of proteins involved in the cell adaptation to different growth conditions as well as in beneficial or harmful effects on human health. The present eBook offers an overview of the most up to date proteomic methodologies and further assesses the strength of proteomics in exploring different aspects of the foodborne microorganism life-style and defining biomarkers of food quality and safety.