Studying interactions between noroviruses and their environment to reduce foodborne transmission

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Human norovirus (hNoV) is the leading cause of acute gastroenteritis worldwide. In Canada, it causes 65% of foodborne illnesses, more than one million cases each year. Its resistance to a wide range of environmental conditions and to many conventional disinfectants contributes to its transmissibility. Foodborne viruses have recently been the subject of several studies to explain their high impact and resistance in the environment. Nonetheless, an important part of these studies was carried out with pure viral cultures without considering their interactions with the microbial community. However, foodborne viruses coexist with commensal bacteria prior to and during infection. Although the effect of bacteria in the human gut microbiota on the infectiousness of enteric viruses has been examined, several gaps remain regarding the importance of virus-bacteria interactions. The same is true for interactions between viruses and food microflora and their role in the persistence of hNoV in food matrices. In this five-year research program, a multidisciplinary approach based on molecular biology, biophysics, digestive physiology, interface chemistry and food science will be applied to study interactions virus-bacteria and how these influence viral persistence and resistance to sanitizers. We especially seek to (i) develop a collection of hNoV circulating in Canadia using a zebrafish larvae system; (ii) study in vitro the behavior and gastrointestinal resistance of hNoV in various food matrices; (iii) identify interactions between hNoV and other microorganisms in different environments, and (iv) evaluate the impact of these interactions on the effectiveness of viral inactivation strategies and implications for foodborne viruses in general. The proposed research program is entirely original and is a logical continuation of our previous works. It addresses the problem of hNoV in the food sector, a national and international priority in the fight against foodborne diseases. The results of this program will generate valuable data on the behavior of hNoV in the food environment and the factors that explain its persistence and resistance. Understanding these phenomena related to the transmission is essential to establishing the best strategies to reduce the incidence of hNoV at all points in the food chain and thus break the cycle of transmission from the food environment to consumers. In addition to the development of more effective inactivation strategies in the food sector, our results could also be used in the development of guidelines to limit the transmission of hNoV, reinforce food safety and thereby reassure consumers. On the longer term, our results will have a significant socio-economic impact since implementing the most effective means of reducing the incidence of viral foodborne illness can only lessen the burden on the healthcare system and reduce absenteeism and losses due to recalls of contaminated products in Canada and worldwide.