Extraction of food-borne viruses from food samples: A review

Detection of food-borne viruses such as noroviruses, rotaviruses and hepatitis A virus in food products differs from detection of most food-borne bacteria, as most of these viruses cannot be cultivated in cell culture to date. Therefore, detection of food-borne viruses in food products requires multiple steps: first, virus extraction; second, purification of the viral genomic material (RNA for the majority of food-borne viruses); and last, molecular detection. This review is focused on the first step, the virus extraction. All of the numerous published protocols for virus extraction from food samples are based on 3 main approaches: 1) (acid adsorption–) elution–concentration; 2) direct RNA extraction; and 3) proteinase K treatment. This review summarizes these virus extraction approaches and the results obtained from published protocols. The use of process controls is also briefly described.

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► This paper gives an overview of methods for extraction of viruses from foods.
► 3 food categories: fat/protein foods, water/carbohydrate foods, shellfish.
► Different approaches for extraction of viruses from these food categories.
► Quality control: process controls.