By Kev' Moye
En Huang, Ph.D., an associate professor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences’ Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health Department of Environmental Health Sciences, has received a three-year, $1 million research grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Huang and his team — which consists of Sun Hee Moon, Ph.D., and Se-Ran Jun, Ph.D., from UAMS; along with Xinhui Li, Ph.D., of the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse; Erin DiCaprio, Ph.D., of the University of California-Davis; and Xu Yang, Ph.D., of California State Polytechnic University-Pomona — will investigate why some bacteria isolated from retail vegetables in the United States are resistant to beta-lactam antibiotics. The aforementioned class of antibiotics – considered the most important classes of antibiotics – are used in the management and treatment of bacterial infections.
“Food is an important vehicle for transmitting foodborne microorganisms,” Huang said. “Since most vegetables are consumed when they’re raw or after only being minimally cooked, if present, those antibiotic-resistant bacteria could potentially harm people. Therefore, there’s an urgent need to understand the role of fresh produce in the transmission of antibiotic resistance.”
