Foodborne illness is a severe threat to public health

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded Texas Woman's University $292,496 on August 15, 2026, under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI, CFDA 10.310) to develop and optimize a fast, simple, and sensitive method for detecting aerosolized Listeria from air and food contact surfaces in ready-to-eat food processing facilities. The project will use a bioaerosol sampler to concentrate Listeria onto a filter membrane, followed by surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection with nanomaterials to identify pathogens within minutes rather than through traditional time-consuming culture-based methods. The recipient will optimize filtration and washing steps to minimize matrix interference and compare the method's performance against culture-based approaches. Work is performed in Denton, Texas, with a period of performance through August 14, 2028.

Foodborne pathogens exist not only within food products but also in the environment such as air and food contact surface. Listeria is a persistent bacteria widely distributed in the environment and easy to spread through the air which remains a concern for ready-to-eat food processing facilities. Fast and simple methods for pathogen detection in the environment is critical to ensure food safety. However, traditional culture-based methods for detecting airborne listeria are time-consuming and complicated. The overall goal of this project is to develop and optimize a fast, simple, and sensitive method for the detection of aerosolized listeria from the air and food contact surfaces. In this study, listeria will be quickly concentrated onto a filter membrane out of the ambient air or from surface swabs with a bioaerosol sampler. Surface-enhanced raman scattering (sers) technique will be used to detect pathogens directly on a filter which allows for the detection of low concentrations of biological compounds within minutes due to the signal enhancement provided by the nanomaterials. The filtration process and washing steps will be optimized to minimize the matrices interference. The performance of the method will be thoroughly evaluated and compared with culture-based method. The outcome of this project will greatly benefit the long-term food safety system and help ensure a safer food supply for consumers.