LISTERIA Julia Lucía Leal Villarreal

MONOCYTOGENES A01191758
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE
MICROORGANISM

Scientific name: Listeria monocytogenes

Gram positive

environmental pathogen

Post‐heat‐processing contamination from the

plant environment, including plant personnel,
equipment, floors, walls, drains and condensation
from coolers is a primary source of contamination.
TYPE OF MICROORGANISM
Facultative anaerobic bacterium.

Psychrotrophic.

Non-spore forming rod-shaped bacterium.

It belongs to the genus Listeria and is considered a pathogen.

L. monocytogenes infects humans and animals.

The serotypes most often associated with human illness are 1/2a, 1/2b and 4b (FDA 2012).
LIMITING CONDITIONS FOR
PATHOGEN GROWTH
Max.
%
Temperature (ºC) pH aW water
phase
salt
Minimum Optimum Maximum Minimum Optimum Maximum Minimum Optimum Maximum

-0.4 37 45 4.4 7.0 9.4 0.92 - - 10

 TYPE OF FOOD ASSOCIATED WITH
OUTBREAKS
Outbreaks of Listeria infections in the 1990s were
primarily linked to deli meats and hot dogs.

Today Listeria M. outbreaks are often linked to:

• Ready‐to‐eat meat products
• unpasteurized dairy products
• low‐acid ready‐to‐eat foods

Ready-to-eat products support growth.

Unpasteurized milk and products including Hot dogs, pâtés, lunch meats, and cold cuts.
soft cheese, ice cream, and yogurt.

Although products made from pasteurized

milk they can still become contaminated if
they are produced in facilities with unsanitary
conditions.
Refrigerated smoked seafood, such as:

Salmon
Other recent outbreaks:
Trout
Whitefish
Cod
Raw or lightly cooked sprouts Tuna

Melons Often labeled as “nova-style,” “lox,” “kippered,”

“smoked,” or “jerky”.
TYPE OF TOXIN
Listeriolysin O (LLO) is a hemolysin produced by all virulent strains of Listeria M.

Crucial for the virulence of L. monocytogenes.

Cumulative time and temperature guidance for controlling pathogen growth and toxin formation in foods:

Potentially Hazardous Product Temperature Maximum Cumulative

Condition Exposure Time

Listeria monocytogenes 31.3‐41°F (‐0.4‐5°C) 7 days

growth 42‐50°F (6‐10°C) 1 days
51‐70°F (11‐21°C) 7 hours
71‐86°F (22‐30°C) 3 hours
Above 86°F (30°C) 1 hour
 TYPE OF ILLNESS AND SYMPTOMS
In a healthy person  no symptoms or a flu‐like illness, diarrhea.
Infection causes severe illness in susceptible people (low immune system,
pregnant and the elderly)– mortality 15‐30%.

Up to one third of those who are hospitalized die.

Can cause meningitis, a severe infection with symptoms including sudden fever,
intense headache, nausea, vomiting, delirium and coma in people with
suppressed immune systems.

Pregnant women  can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or

life-threatening infection of the newborn.

2 weeks after eating contaminated food (but can be much longer)  tracing the
source of illness can be very difficult.
CASE
On October 3, 2018, Johnston County Hams, Inc. in Smithfield, North Carolina
recalled ham products because they might be contaminated with Listeria bacteria.

89,096 pounds of ready-to-eat ham products.

The ready-to-eat deli-loaf ham items were produced from April 3, 2017 to Oct. 2,
2018.

Class 1 recall.

“Return any recalled deli ham to the store for a refund or throw it away. Even if
some ham was eaten and no one got sick, do not eat it. If you do not know if the
ham you purchased was recalled, ask the place where you purchased it or throw it
away” (CDC, 2018).
 INACTIVATION OF LISTERIA
MONOCYTOGENES (PREVENTION &
CONTROL)
Killed by pasteurization temperatures.

Lethal rate is the relative lethality of 1 minute at the reference

internal product temperature of 158°F (70°C).

1 minute at 145°F (63°C) is 0.117 times as lethal as 1 minute at

158°F (70°C).

Times provided are the length of time at the designated internal

product temperature necessary to deliver a six logarithm (6D)
process for L. monocytogenes.

6D  dependent upon the food in which it is being heated.

This values apply to all foods, never less, higher levels may be
necessary in foods where high initial levels are anticipated.
REFERENCES
FDA (2012) Bad bug book: Foodborne pathogenic microorganisms and natural
toxins handbook, 2nd ed. US Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, p.100–
104.
http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodborneIllnessContaminants/CausesOfIllnessBadBugBo
ok/ucm2 006773.htm. Accessed 27 March 2013

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018). Outbreak of Listeria Infections
Linked to Deli Ham.
https://www.cdc.gov/listeria/outbreaks/countryham-10-18/index.html