For a delicacy food that it is not routinely consumed, the criteria by which consumers determine whether they like it may not be clear. For such foods, it is highly likely that external cues, such as information, play an important role in sensory perception and hedonic judgment. However, such information may have different effects depending on the consumers\' preconceived stereotype. Sashimi is thin slices of fresh raw fish, considered a delicacy food in many countries. This study was conducted to investigate whether information about the size of a fish affected expectations and acceptance of sashimi and whether the effect of such information differed depending on the type of stereotype about the relationship between fish size and the sensory quality of sashimi. Sashimi was prepared from large- (2.5 kg; LS) and small-sized (1.5 kg; SS) olive flounders. The overall sensory difference between LS and SS was determined using a triangle test (n = 58) and liking of the sashimi samples was rated by 48 consumers in blind and informed settings. There was no significant difference in sensory characteristics between LS and SS. Different types of stereotypes were associated with different interpretations of the same extrinsic cues, and affected expectations and acceptance. The stereotype that sashimi from large fish tastes better than that from small fish induced higher expected liking and actual liking for LS than for SS. This suggests that hedonic judgment of sashimi, a delicacy food, is influenced more strongly by external cues and stereotype than by intrinsic sensory traits.

The changes of sensory and biochemical characteristics on the fresh and frozen-thawed scallop adductor muscle during storage at 4°C were discussed in this study. The Quality Index Method (QIM) scheme for evaluating scallop adductor muscle as raw materials for sashimi was proposed for the first time. The results of sensory evaluation showed that frozen-thawed scallop adductor muscle within zero to one day of refrigeration can be happily accepted by consumers, indicating the superiority of freezing for long-distance transportation, although the triangle test confirmed that there are still sensorial differences between fresh and frozen-thawed scallop adductor muscle. The microscopic observation of myofibrils extracted from scallop adductor muscle suggested that the myofibrillar protein which constitutes myofibrils has suffered some extent change due to freezing and thawing, even though the head region of myosin remained stable judging by the fact that there was no significant difference in Ca2+ -ATPase activity (p > 0.05). The changes of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and its related compounds, and pH value during storage can be regarded as indicators to differentiate fresh and frozen-thawed scallop adductor muscle. The changes of Mg2+ -ATPase activity indicated that the interaction between myosin and actin was weakened by the freezing and thawing process. Practical Application: The QIM scheme can be used to evaluate the scallop adductor muscle as raw materials for sashimi. The mechanism of quality changes in the frozen-thawed scallop adductor muscle was discussed in combination with the destruction of myofibrils, ATP degradation and the decrease of pH value. This study has positive significance for improving the quality of frozen-thawed scallop adductor muscle by combining the changes of sensory and biochemical characteristics.

Aeromonas hydrophila is an emerging foodborne pathogen capable of causing human gastroenteritis, and the main reservoir is the aquatic environment. In this study, the prevalence and virulence of A. hydrophila in seafoods and ready-to-eat (RTE) sushi distributed in various conditions (refrigerated, dried, or frozen) or seasons was investigated. Strains were isolated from seafood (refrigerated or frozen oysters, sashimi, and processed fish; n = 333) and RTE sushi (n = 88) samples collected in South Korea and then genetically analyzed for gastroenteritis-related virulence genes (aer, ast, and alt). Raw oysters showed the highest prevalence of A. hydrophila (57.1%; 47/91) among all seafoods. Among the sashimi samples, flatfish sashimi (54.8%; 34/62) and salmon sushi (51.4%; 18/35) were the most prevalent. A. hydrophila was not detected in the oysters or anchovies distributed as either frozen or dried products. Seasonal investigations of sashimi and sushi showed that the summer prevalence of A. hydrophila with putative virulence genes was significantly lower in sashimi but highest in sushi. These results indicated that sushi could have been contaminated from several sources during the manufacturing or distribution processes. Significant correlations among the prevalence of putative virulence genes were confirmed, although no combination of genes presented a Phi correlation coefficient above 0.5 (0.26-0.43). To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the prevalence of A. hydrophila in various types of retail seafoods and RTE sushi in the East Asia region and then relate the prevalence to the distribution conditions of the samples. This study provides background information on the level of potential risk posed by A. hydrophila in retail seafoods and RTE sushi.

Increasingly popular worldwide, Japanese cuisine includes several raw preparations such as sashimi and sushi; however, limited information on food poisoning from Japanese local food is available in English literature. Without appropriate knowledge, physicians may underdiagnose traveler\'s diarrhea among people returning from Japan. To provide accurate information to primary care physicians worldwide, we conducted a narrative review on food poisoning research published in Japanese and English over the past four years, considering the frequency and clinical importance of various presentations.

The Thunnini, or tuna, comprise many species with very different commercial values. The principal raw tuna product on the market is sashimi, for which the species used is difficult to identify through conventional morphological analysis. The present study amplified the cytochrome b gene (Cytb) of 4 major tuna species used for preparing sashimi-yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares), southern bluefin tuna (Thunnus maccoyii), bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus), and Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus)-and 4 species commonly mislabeled as components of tuna sashimi-albacore tuna (Thunnus alalunga), skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis), striped marlin (Tetrapturus audax), and swordfish (Xiphias gladius). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplicons were digested with 5 restriction enzymes-Eco147 I, Hinf I, Mbo I, Xag I, and Hind II-to obtain characteristic restriction maps of the above-mentioned raw tuna species and the commonly mislabeled species. An identification method using PCR restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was established and validated using 39 commercial tuna sashimi samples, which verified that this method provides results consistent with those obtained by classical sequencing. PCR-RFLP has several advantages over classical sequencing, such as simplicity, speed and accuracy. This technique could support species identification for raw tuna and sashimi.

UNASSIGNED: The presence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains in food products is a major issue for food safety. The present study was conducted to evaluate the occurrence and antimicrobial resistance profile of S. aureus, focusing on MRSA isolates, in ready-to-eat sashimi from Japanese restaurants in Salvador, Brazil. A total of 127 sashimi samples were collected directly from the take-out service in 16 restaurants. The staphylococcal isolates were identified morphologically and biochemically with standard laboratory procedures. S. aureus isolates were tested with a disk diffusion assay against seven antibiotics, and the cefoxitin and oxacillin were used to identify MRSA strains. Isolates with the MRSA phenotype were confirmed with a PCR assay. S. aureus was found in 73% of the sashimi samples, including sashimi from tuna (75.5% of samples) and salmon (72.5% of samples). Among those positive samples, 37% were contaminated with MRSA strains, found among 38.8% of salmon sashimi and 34.0% of tuna sashimi. Penicillin resistance was the most common type of antimicrobial resistance, found in 65.5% of the sashimi samples, followed by resistance to tetracycline (22.5%), erythromycin (16.0%), and ciprofloxacin (3.2%). Only two S. aureus isolates collected from different fish samples and restaurants had presumed resistance to vancomycin. The high prevalence of S. aureus and MRSA in these sashimi samples indicates a potential risk for foodborne disease, especially MRSA, spreading in the community.
CONCLUSIONS:

Minimally processed and ready-to-eat (RTE) seafood products are gaining popularity because of their availability in retail stores and the consumers\' perception of convenience. Products that are subjected to mild processing and products that do not require additional heating prior to consumption are eaten by an increasing proportion of the population, including people that are more susceptible to foodborne disease. Worldwide, seafood is an important source of foodborne outbreaks, but the exact burden is not known. The increased interest in seafood products for raw consumption introduces new food safety issues that must be addressed by all actors in the food chain. Bacteria belonging to genus Aeromonas are ubiquitous in marine environments, and Aeromonas spp. has held the title \"emerging foodborne pathogen\" for more than a decade. Given its high prevalence in seafood and in vegetables included in many RTE seafood meals, the significance of Aeromonas as a potential foodborne pathogen and a food spoilage organism increases. Some Aeromonas spp. can grow relatively uninhibited in food during refrigeration under a broad range of pH and NaCl concentrations, and in various packaging atmospheres. Strains of several Aeromonas species have shown spoilage potential by the production of spoilage associated metabolites in various seafood products, but the knowledge on spoilage in cold water fish species is scarce. The question about the significance of Aeromonas spp. in RTE seafood products is challenged by the limited knowledge on how to identify the truly virulent strains. The limited information on clinically relevant strains is partly due to few registered outbreaks, and to the disputed role as a true foodborne pathogen. However, it is likely that illness caused by Aeromonas might go on undetected due to unreported cases and a lack of adequate identification schemes. A rather confusing taxonomy and inadequate biochemical tests for species identification has led to a biased focus towards some Aeromonas species. Over the last ten years, several housekeeping genes has replaced the 16S rRNA gene as suitable genetic markers for phylogenetic analysis. The result is a more clear and robust taxonomy and updated knowledge on the currently circulating environmental strains. Nevertheless, more knowledge on which factors that contribute to virulence and how to control the potential pathogenic strains of Aeromonas in perishable RTE seafood products are needed.

The present study investigated the tenderisation effects ultrasound processing (UT) on farmed cobia sashimi. Age-treated cobia trunk muscles (AT) were used as the control. The pH, total volatile base nitrogen, trimethylamine nitrogen, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, ATP catabolism components, K1 value, and texture were evaluated. The texture of AT sashimi reached the optimal firmness range with 8.53N at day 7. However, AT samples could not be served raw after day 7 because of their poor freshness indexes, including a TVBN value of 18.53g/100g, a TMAN value of 3.25mg/100g, and a TBARS value 0.983MDAmg/100g. Moreover, the K1 value of AT sashimi was 20.21% at day 5. UT was employed to efficiently tenderise cobia sashimi with an initial firmness of 9.70-7.82N after 90min of treatment. The results of this study indicate that UT accelerates the biochemical reaction rate, as evidenced by the increases in the TVBN, TMAN, and TBARS contents; however, these values were very low. The results of this study could provide basic information for the development of a novel ultrasonic tenderisation technique in raw seafood designed for restaurants and consumers.

Sushi restaurants have become quite popular in Europe, with an increase in the consumption of the sashimi speciality. Pathogenic bacteria such as Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus cereus have been reported in this kind of food. Controlling the presence and multiplication of L. monocytogenes is a challenge for food safety management systems owing to its ubiquitous presence and psychrotrophic growth. Bacteriophages have been used as pathogenic biocide agents for decades. The bacteriophage P100, present in LISTEX P100, was used in this study to understand the possibility of implementing a new critical control point for L. monocytogenes in sashimi preparation and sale. Different concentrations of LISTEX P100 were used for reduction of L. monocytogenes in inoculated samples at 3 and 22°C. The reduction in initial counts of 2 log CFU/g was effective in the first 24 h with the 8-log PFU/g inoculation. Promising results were obtained in assays with the 6-log CFU/g initial counts and the 8-log PFU/g inoculation, at 22°C, achieving a maximum reduction of 4.44 log CFU/g, compared with the control group. These results seem to confirm that bacteriophages can be an option in reducing the population of the L. monocytogenes pathogenic bacteria in sashimi, mainly in takeaway sales.

A 2-year study was performed at two ready-to-eat tilapia sashimi processing plants (A and B) to identify possible routes of contamination with Listeria monocytogenes during processing. Samples were collected from the aquaculture environments, transportation tanks, processing plants, and final products. Seventy-nine L. monocytogenes isolates were found in the processing environments and final products; 3.96% (50 of 1,264 samples) and 3.86% (29 of 752 samples) of the samples from plants A and B, respectively, were positive for L. monocytogenes . No L. monocytogenes was detected in the aquaculture environments or transportation tanks. The predominant L. monocytogenes serotypes were 1/2b (55.70%) and 4b (37.97%); serotypes 3b and 4e were detected at much lower percentages. At both plants, most processing sections were contaminated with L. monocytogenes before the start of processing, which indicated that the cleaning and sanitizing methods did not achieve adequate pathogen removal. Eleven seropulsotypes were revealed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and serotyping. Analysis of seropulsotype distribution revealed that the contamination was disseminated by the processing work; the same seropulsotypes were repeatedly found along the work flow line and in the final products. Specific seropulsotypes were persistently found during different sampling periods, which suggests that the sanitation procedures or equipment used at these plants were inadequate. Plant staff should improve the sanitation procedures and equipment to reduce the risk of L. monocytogenes cross-contamination and ensure the safety of ready-to-eat tilapia products.