A Mini Review: Cholera Outbreak via Shellfish

<strong>Problem statement:</strong> Food borne illness occurs all over the world. &#13; <i>Vibrio cholerae </i>is the etiological agent of cholera which is spread by contaminated &#13; food, water or direct fecal contact with food handlers. There are also examples &#13; of sporadic outbreaks of illness attributed to raw products eaten unprocessed. &#13; Consequently, there was a widespread concern that food in international trade &#13; carries pathogenic microorganisms that could result in outbreaks of illness. <strong>Approach:</strong> &#13; A review was done on the role of shellfish and seafood in the transmission of &#13; cholera. Google, Pubmed and Scpus were used in preparation of this review. <strong>Results:</strong> &#13; This review clarified that shellfish is one of the main seafood sources for the &#13; transmission of cholera. In natural waters <i>Vibrio cholerae</i> can be presented in &#13; both free-living state or attached to copepods, zooplankter and algae. <i>Vibrio &#13; cholerae</i> can adhere strongly to the shellfish digestive tract and cannot be effectively &#13; removed by rinsing the shellfish or by depuration. Colonization or attachment &#13; of <i>Vibrio </i>cholerae<i> </i>to shellfish increased the resistance of these bacteria to &#13; heat, drying and low pH. <strong>Conclusion: </strong>Therefore, sea food in general &#13; and shellfish in particular provided suitable background for cholera outbreaks. &#13; Unfortunately, this mode of transmission was underestimated. Accordingly, proper &#13; cooking, storing and re-heating of foods before eating were considered as main &#13; safety measures for preventing food-borne transmission of cholera. It was recommended &#13; to reconsider this mode of transmission for cholera again as source of cholera &#13; epidemics.