Biosensors for Indirect Monitoring of Foodborne Bacteria

Microbiological safety assessment in food samples is often a cumbersome and time consuming task that has to be done in a regular basis in most food manufacturing facilities. Standard microbiological techniques for evaluating critical levels of bacteria take several days to yield results, thus the food products have to be withheld in the processing factories until the safety inspection is concluded. The food industry requires faster and reliable tools for more efficient microbiological testing that can reduce the safety inspection lag significantly. Biosensors that target specific molecules associated with bacterial activity are amongst the most promising technologies for addressing this need. State-ofthe-art biosensors allow for instantaneous quantification of molecular biomarkers. This review focuses on describing the operation mechanism and technological challenges and opportunities for developing high performance biosensors capable of real-time monitoring of biomarkers from foodborne bacteria. Biosensors for Indirect Monitoring of Foodborne Bacteria