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Aims: To test some safety-related properties within 321 staphylococci strains isolated from food and food environments. Methods and Results: The isolates were identified as Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus saprophyticus, Staphylococcus pasteuri, Staphylococcus sciuri, Staphylococcus warneri and Staphylococcus xylosus. Decarboxylase activity was quite common for the various Staphylococcus spp., and tyrosine was the most frequently decarboxylated amino acid. The frequency of antibiotic resistance was highest in Staph. pasteuri and Staph. xylosus. Several of the isolates were tolerant to QAC compounds, and in some cases, QAC tolerance was present in antibiotic-resistant strains. Most of the strains displayed moderate to high adhesion rates to stainless steel and Teflon. The strains that readily formed biofilms belonged to the species Staph. aureus, Staph. epidermidis and Staph. pasteuri. Conclusions: An high incidence of some safety hazards was found within the staphylococcal strains of food origin tested in this study. In particular, amino acid decarboxylase activity and biofilm-forming ability were common within strains, and antibiotic resistance and tolerance to QAC-based compounds occurred frequently as well. These characteristics are an important safety concern for food industry. Significance and Impact of the Study: This work gives a first picture of safety hazards within staphylococcal species isolated from food environments. The presence of disinfectant-resistant staphylococci is a concern because resistance can be genetically transferred between the various Staphylococcus species. This could lead an increase and spread of resistant enterotoxic staphylococci and . or pathogenic staphylococci

The aim of the study was to identify the species of Enterobacteriaceae present in Montasio cheese and to assess their potential to produce biogenic amines. Plate count methods and an Enterobacterial Repetitive Intergenic Consensus Polymerase Chain Reaction (ERIC-PCR) approach, combined with 16S rDNA sequencing, were used to investigate the Enterobacteriaceae community present during the cheesemaking and ripening of 6 batches of Montasio cheese. Additionally, the potential decarboxylation abilities of selected bacterial isolates were qualitatively and quantitatively assessed against tyrosine, histidine, ornithine and lysine. The most predominant species detected during cheese manufacturing and ripening were Enterobacter cloacae, Escherichia coli and Hafnia alvei. The non-limiting physico-chemical conditions (pH, NaCl% and a(w)) during ripening were probably the cause of the presence of detectable levels of Enterobacteriaceae up to 120 d of ripening. The HPLC test showed that cadaverine and putrescine were the amines produced in higher amounts by almost all isolates, indicating that the presence of these amines in cheese can be linked to the presence of high counts of Enterobacteriaceae. 44 isolates produced low amounts of histamine (<300 ppm), and four isolates produced more than 1000 ppm of this amine. Only 9 isolates, belonging to the species Citrobacter freundii, Esch. coli and Raoultella ornithinolytica, appeared to produce tyramine. These data provided new information regarding the decarboxylase activity of some Enterobacteriaceae species, including Pantoea agglomerans, Esch. fergusonii and R. ornithinolytica.

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Background Incidence of coronary access (CA) after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) at long‐term follow‐up remains unknown. CA and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) after TAVR might present technical challenges, particularly with supra‐annular devices. Methods Patients undergoing CA after being treated with TAVR at our institution were included in the study. Coronary interventions for coronary obstruction during TAVR procedure were excluded. Incidence, feasibility and outcomes of CA after TAVR were analyzed. Results Out of 912 patients aged 80 ± 7 years treated with TAVR at our institution between 2007 and 2018, 48 (5.3%) underwent CA at a median follow up of 769 [363–1,471] days. Twenty‐one had received a SAPIEN XT, 15 a SAPIEN 3, 6 Corevalve, 2 Evolut Pro, 2 JenaValve, and 2 Lotus valve. PCI was indicated in 26 (54%) cases. Seventeen (35%) procedures were performed for acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Independent predictors of CA after TAVR were younger age, previous PCI, and CABG. CA of both vessels was feasible in all patients with an intra‐annular device, while the right coronary artery was not engaged in two patients with a supra‐annular valve. PCI was successful in all but one case. All‐cause mortality was similar between patients needing CA for ACS and those who had other clinical indications. Conclusions In this high‐risk AS population, incidence of CA after TAVR at long‐term follow‐up was rather low. CA and PCI were safe and successful in most cases, with a lower rate of selective CA for supra‐annular devices.