Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (OUCRU); Head of Microbiology- Parasitology Research Unit, Biomedical Research Centre, Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine, Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam
Title of the talk: Salmonella Typhimurium causing large school-associated foodborne outbreak in Nha Trang, Vietnam 2022
Abstract
WHO suggested food safety is a major public health priority for governments since it plays an important role in the sustainable development of countries. It was estimated that more than 600 million cases of foodborne illness with 420 thousand deaths annually. Foodborne disease is unequally distributed globally with highest incidence (53%), rate of death (75%) and loss of DALYSs (72%) reported in low and low-middle income countries in Asia and SubSaharan Africa. Recently, a foodborne outbreak was reported in the Central of Vietnam affecting over six hundred students. Our investigation included epidemiological, microbiological and whole genomic analysis. Among potentially exposed persons there were 661 cases. The majority of cases (90.5%) had onset of symptoms in less than 24 hours. Amongst the served dishes, microbiological culture showed that high Salmonella spp. bacterial load was detected in a food specimen. Whole genome sequence revealed that Salmonella Typhimurium with several virulent factors was responsible for the outbreak. Our results indicated that the acquisition of important virulence gene(s) could enhance the pathogenicity of animal originated Salmonella Typhimurium.
Biography
Ngo T. Hoa is a microbiologist and completed her PhD training in molecular biology in University of London. She spent three years at Yale University as postdoc fellow, funded by the Wellcome Trust. In 2005, She returned to Vietnam and joined Oxford University Clinical Research Unit, HCMC. She has led the Zoonoses group since 2013 to study zoonotic transmission of Streptoccosus suis and antimicrobial resistant bacteria, including those cause food-borne outbreaks. Since 12/2020, she has concurrently been the head of Microbiology- Parasitology Research Unit, Biomedical Research Centre, Pham Ngoc Thach University, to study infections of Talaromyces marneffei, a potential zoonotic and opportunistic fungal pathogen, in HIV patients.
Publications: Researchgate, Google Scholar