Testing and Tattoos: What May Be Lurking in That Ink

Anything that is consumed or applied to our bodies can contain contaminants. In most cases, the human body does a miraculous job at resisting and fighting the pathogens. But sometimes, the contaminants can lead to health complications, disease, even death. Tattoo ink has recently come before the firing line as a contaminant carrier worthy of serious attention. But what exactly does that mean for ink enthusiasts, and can testing be performed to potentially correct the concerns?

Salmonella at the Source: What You Need to Know About Your Food

Most food recalls deal directly with simple mistakes: accidental ingredient omission on labels, or marking an item as gluten-free when it’s actually a gluten source. While these mistakes can lead to problems, primarily related to allergic reactions, news reports make it seem like every recall is an all out attack on the American public. While pathogens do play a part in recalls, for the most part they only affect those people who have low immunity to the bacteria, such as children, senior citizens, pregnant women, and individuals who have immune issues due to disease. 

Salmonella Outbreak Victims Unite: $6.8 Million Lawsuit Makes History

On June 2, 2014 a court decision shocked the nation as one of the largest egg manufacturers in the U.S. was charged with almost $7 million in fines for their responsibility in a nationwide salmonella breakout in 2010. The owner and chief operating officer of Quality Egg LLC, 79 year old Austin DeCoster and his son, 50-year-old Peter DeCoster, are charged with knowingly selling unapproved food to commercial businesses. The act earned them each a misdemeanor. Both DeCosters were charged $100,000 fines, each, and may be convicted for up to a year in prison.

The Similarities and Differences in Modern Medications

In today’s society, medications are used and required for everything from the discomfort of a mosquito bite to treat the symptoms and unbearable pain associated with chronic disease. All forms of medication undergo some form of testing, but it may be surprising to know what that entails.

Listeria Takes Over the World

Improper food and substance handling from factories to store shelve have led to mass panic and true outbreaks in bacterial-based contamination of food sources. Each year it seems as though there’s a new super pathogen. Without the aid of upfront microbiology quality assurance, several pathogens and bacterial strains developed resistance to simple antibacterial and pharmaceutical treated strategies. However, if you've recently watched news or read a paper, you've likely heard another name: listeria.

Microbial Food Trends

Every year seems to end with its own share of food-related scares and scandals. And 2013 made its own mark on both ends. With the recent and ongoing bacteria-laced scares, as well as the European-based horse meat scandal, Americans have spoken out and expressed their unwillingness to take anymore. It’s about time. As such, food trends for 2014 focus more on microbial testing and elimination of specific pathogen-based contaminants.

Killer Cosmetics: When Rapid Microbiological Testing Can’t Be Skipped

There’s a famous quote that states if women were happier as a whole with their appearance, the cosmetic industry would be in trouble. And while there’s substance to that, the truth is that if all cosmetic manufacturers utilized microbiological quality control guidelines, there would also be less illness and premature death in the world.

Bacteria-Laced Beauty – Do All Fillers Undergo Rapid Microbiological Testing?

Since 1981, cosmetic derma filler applications have taken over as the inexpensive version to going under the knife. Almost replacing facelifts as a whole, those who simply want to hide wrinkles and avoid aging gracefully opt for toxic injections instead. But not only can those cause all sorts of nasty side effects on their own, the filling substances are also breeding grounds for bacteria. Without proper microbiological quality assurance applied, you could lose a lot more than a few wrinkles.

5 Changes in Microbiological Testing for the Food Industry

The globalization of the food supply chain and the growing concern over food safety expressed by the public has placed heavy demands and expectations on the food microbiology diagnostics sector. Players in the field describe this as a challenging and critical time which presents a mixed bag of fortunes. As it is with any market dynamics, those who are well informed stand to reap the most.

Strategic Consulting, Inc. (SCI) has published two new data reports that reveal five major trends in the food testing domain that will shape 2014.

Eat Safely: 10 Ways to Know If Food Has Spoiled

Although the five human senses cannot always detect food spoilage, there are a few easy ways to know whether or not food is still consumable. If you have ever doubted the quality of food, whether inside your fridge or on the store shelf, you need to know how to tell if food has spoiled. Here are the top 10 ways to know whether or not food has gone bad:

The Role of Rapid Microbiological Testing in the Cosmetics Industry

Rapid microbiological testing plays an important role in the cosmetics, toiletries, and personal care industries. Microorganisms can cause spoilage or unwanted chemical changes, and can potentially harm consumers using the product. Cosmetics testing assures that cosmetic, personal care, health and beauty products are free of harmful microorganisms and safe for consumer use. These rapid microbiology methods provide a simple and time-saving way to demonstrate product quality that take less time compared to traditional culture-based methods.

Suitability Testing's Role in Modern Rapid Microbiology Testing Systems

Among the most critical aspects of controlling the manufacturing process and providing microbiology quality assurance in the production process is maintaining the proper use and application of key testing procedures that were established during the research and development phase. Conventional methods used to monitor the performance of analytical procedures range from the use of control samples with known values for method validation, to the use of titration blanks, periodic calibration and instrument qualification. In addition, many test procedures can be monitored using system suitability tests.

The Crucial Role of Microbiology Testing in the Expanding Pharmaceutical Industry

Over the years, the U.S. has remained the world’s biggest market for pharmaceutical products and the global leader in biopharmaceutical research. In fact, the massive U.S. pharmaceutical industry accounts for about 80 percent of all research and development in biotechnology in the world. The United States National Institute of Health claims that there are approximately 140,000 clinical trials underway for pharmaceutical products awaiting FDA approval, which the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacture of America (PhRMA) claims to have an annual value of over $67 billion.  

10 Assays for Simplified, Rapid, Automated Microbiology Testing

Through rapid automated microbiology systems, various industries can increase throughput and plant efficiency in the quality assurance of their products, as per the new requirements of the FDA. Each system comprises instruments that can test multiple, individual assay vials; software for the rapid and real-time transfer of results; and disposable vials for use in required microbiological assays. 10 vials are described below: 

Importance of an Efficient Quality Assurance System in Microbiology Testing

In the nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics industries, quality means conformance to standards set by both the manufacturer and the industry. These standards must not only reflect a strong emphasis on the desired features of a product but also on its safety and efficacy.

To maintain quality, quality control (QC) procedures are employed. These procedures are in place to identify any action that does not meet the specified standards for quality. As a tool, QC is said to be corrective in nature. Its goal is to find and eliminate where problems in quality originate from. An example of QC in a typical micro laboratory is the regular monitoring of reagents and test samples.

Water Testing: Rapid Detection Methods for Heterotrophic Bacteria

Bacterial growth in water distribution systems is a commonly used indication of potential health issues. Gaining an accurate assessment of the heterotrophic bacteria count is crucial for determining how effective water treatment systems are working. Unfortunately traditional testing methods for heterotrophic bacteria are often inaccurate and slow. Below you can discover some of the primary limitations of heterotrophic bacteria testing methods and why advanced rapid detection systems have been developed.

The Pharmaceutical Industry's Use of Rapid Microbiology Testing

Pharmaceutical products such as supplements and prescribed drugs are capsuled in either a hard or soft shell. Just like the granules they contain, these shells are brought to the laboratory for testing. For the longest time, microbiologists have used the plate count methodology to determine a capsule's bacterial, yeast, and mold counts. But while this method is effective, it poses several difficulties. For instance, it is labor-intensive. From the preparation of the agar up to the counting of colonies, it can take five days to finish one test. Aside from that, this method is also prone to errors. Enter simplified, rapid, automated microbiology testing.

Microbiology Quality Assurance: Rapid Yeast and Mold Detection

Mold and yeast are agents which can be responsible for contamination as well as spoilage in most products. A lot of these agents can develop something known as mycotoxins which can infuse itself into the product. If this is done in large quantities, it can cause poisoning. According to the American Society for Microbiology the presence of yeast can affect the product salability and quality, which can lead to significant financial loss for the food supplier. This is why rapid yeast and mold testing is important so that your organization will remain efficient and hygienic. Microbiology quality assurance can help you detect yeast, mold and other agents that may contaminate your products.

Understanding Quality Assurance in the Food Industry: Microbiological Testing of Yogurt

While yogurt is generally viewed as a health food there are specific dangers for the consumers and the manufacturers. The most important of these is the presence of harmful microorganisms. The main investigative procedures to determine the health of yogurt is testing for yeast, mold and the presence of coliform. Traditional testing methods tend to be slow and labor intensive. This makes them unsuitable for products with a relatively short life such as yogurt. This has led to an interest in more rapid methods of determine the safety of yogurt before it is delivered to store shelves.

Rapid Microbiological Testing: Importance of E. coli Testing

Escherichia coli, which is abbreviated as E. coli, refers to the rod-shaped bacterium that occur naturally in the lower intestines of endotherms, or warm blooded organisms, including human beings, as well as reptiles and fish. While most of these gram-negative organisms are harmless, some of the serotypes can result in serious food poisoning due to food contamination, which is a common reason for product recalls. There are five strains of E. coli that cause diseases. Some of these diseases include hemolytic uremia, copious bloody discharge, unique diarrhea, and Enterohemorrhagic (EHEC) class.