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Oysters not only harbor noroviruses, but they transmit them, too

The latest research, published August 28, in Applied and Environmental Microbiology, a journal of the American Society for Microbiology, suggests that people need to stop eating oysters in their most popular form, raw.

The research was carried out by a team of investigators at the College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China. The lead author of the study, Yongjie Wang, PhD says, “The results highlight oysters’ important role in the persistence of norovirus in the environment, and its transmission to humans, and they demonstrate the need for surveillance of human norovirus in oyster samples.”

In the study, information on all oyster-related norovirus illnesses covering the years 1983 through 2014 were downloaded using two databases, the National Center for Biotechnology’s GenBank database, and the Noronet outbreak database.

Researchers conducted studies on 1,077 oyster-related norovirus sequences, including genotyping and phylogenic analyses, as well as mapping the virus’s genetic diversity and geographic distribution over time. In an earlier study conducted in China, it was found that 90 percent of human norovirus genetic sequences in China came from the country’s coastal waters.

This information led to the conclusion that humans abetted in norovirus contamination of coastal waters, due to waste-water, raw sewage and the like. The new research found this same problem occurring with norovirus contamination of coastal waters to be worldwide, with the exception of tropical regions, where it is absent.

“More than 80 percent of human norovirus genotypes were detected in oyster samples or oyster-related outbreaks, says Professor Wang. Wang says that not only does the study suggest the explanation for oysters harbouring norovirus is related to human waste, but oysters can harbour the virus for weeks in their tissues.

Study is overstated says shellfish industry spokesmen
The shellfish industry is saying there is no great danger from eating raw shellfish, and the possibility of noroviruses in shellfish is not a new revelation.

“That’s nothing new,” said Bill Sieling, the executive vice president of the Chesapeake Bay Seafood Industries Association, in an interview with Laboratory Equipment magazine on Friday. “If you want to be 100 percent safe, you wouldn’t ever eat them raw. But most people who like them don’t worry about that.”

In Seiling’s estimation, because of stringent food safety regulations, raw oysters are safer than many other foods, including meat and chicken, which by the way, no one should eat raw. “Oysters are probably one of the safer products,” he said.

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We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our dear friend Karen Graham, who served as Editor-at-Large at Digital Journal. She was 78 years old. Karen's view of what is happening in our world was colored by her love of history and how the past influences events taking place today. Her belief in humankind's part in the care of the planet and our environment has led her to focus on the need for action in dealing with climate change. It was said by Geoffrey C. Ward, "Journalism is merely history's first draft." Everyone who writes about what is happening today is indeed, writing a small part of our history.

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