精选好文66篇之第22篇 食品安全——小补丁大作用
发表时间：2020-08-02 06:11:44
Tiny Patch Can Help Detect Contaminated(受污染的） Foods
Researchers Hanie Yousefi and Thid Didar examine a transparent patch（透明贴片；透明补丁） that can be used in packaging to detect pathogens on food. McMaster University
To eat that old chicken salad or not to eat that old chicken salad ... that is the question (especially when you're broke and hungry). If you've ever stood in front of an open fridge, weighing the pros and cons（衡量利弊） of eating questionable leftovers（可疑的剩饭剩菜）, perhaps you've lamented（lament，哀悼，感叹）, infomercial-style: "There has to be a better way!" Well now there is. Science!
Researchers at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, have developed a product that has the potential to tip consumers off to （tip sb. off to sth.让某人了解某事） a food's contamination status and the presence of harmful pathogens（ /ˈpæθəˌdʒən/ 病原体，病原菌 )like E. coli and salmonella. The product — a small transparent patch printed with harmless molecules — could actually be incorporated （包含，合并）directly into food packaging and replace that old-school (and less-than-helpful) expiration date（有效期限）, according to a report published in the April 6 edition of the journal ACS Nano.
"In the future, if you go to a store and you want to be sure the meat you're buying is safe at any point before you use it, you'll have a much more reliable way than the expiration date," the report's lead author, Hanie Yousefi, a graduate student and research assistant in McMaster's Faculty of Engineering, said in a press statement.
So how exactly does the mighty patch, known as "Sentinel Wrap" work? If it's integrated into standard packaging, any harmful agent like a bacterium（细菌） or virus that's present in the food or beverage will "show up" when scanned by another device, like a smartphone.
The innovation could have a much bigger impact than just taking the guesswork out of dinner: According to the World Health Organization, foodborne pathogens（食源性病原体） cause approximately 600 million illnesses and 420,000 deaths every year, and about 30 percent of those cases involve children 5 years old and younger.
But while mass producing Sentinel Wrap could be cheap and easy, according to the researchers, actually getting the invention to market would require a commercial partner and regulatory approvals. Beyond the world of food, the researchers say their technology could be applied to other products like bandages to indicate if a wound is infected, or surgical instrument wrapping to ensure tools are sterile （/ˈsteraɪl/无菌的，无生殖能力的）.
Now That's Interesting
Believe it or not, Al Capone is often credited with popularizing the printing of expiration dates on milk products. According to reports, someone in Capone's family got sick from soured dairy, leading the businessman-turned-mobster to purchase a milk processor and lobby the Chicago City Council to pass a law requiring dates to be conspicuously（明显地） stamped on containers.
