Attachment and persistence of noroviruses in the food environment: a structure-function study

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Food-related viral infections today are a major concern in the food and health sectors. These infections cause widespread morbidity throughout the world and lead to considerable economic losses. Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain the preponderance of noroviruses (NoV) compared to other enteric viruses involved in the huge numbers of cases of gastroenteritis. Our previous work led us to hypothesize that the high incidence of NoV in the food sector is linked directly with its ability to adhere to different foods and food contact surfaces and persist there for long periods of time. However, the physicochemical and molecular mechanisms by which NoV attach and persist in this context remain unknown. The overall aim of the scientific program proposed is to elucidate, using a multidisciplinary approach (chemical, physical, biological and molecular), the relationship between the structural characteristics of the NoV viral capsid and its ability to attach to foods and food contact surfaces. Our approach will be based on the use of recombinant NoV capsid protein that self-assembles into "NoV-like particles" (NoVLP), a strategy that has yielded valuable information on NoV in general. In the research now being proposed, we shall adopt a similar approach in order to obtain new fundamental scientific data that will shed light on phenomena associated with NoV attachment and persistence on surfaces. These data will provide a rational basis for implementing the most effective strategies for reducing the incidence of NoV in the food sector. Rinsing and disinfection products could thus be formulated to eliminate enteric viruses that become attached to foods during handling and processing at all stages throughout the food production and distribution chain.