2018Agro11

On-line application form

Supervisor mail:
elena-gonzalez@unirioja.es

Title of the research project:

Control of presence of antibiotic residues in the food chain in La Rioja and Zaragoza, and their effect on antimicrobial resistance in bacteria found in meat.

Description of the research project:

1. State of the art

   According to the World Health Organization antimicrobial resistance is one of the main threats to health that humanity will have to confront over the next decades. The emergence of microbial resistance to antibiotics implies that the latter lose their efficacy: they stop being effective in treating common illnesses.

   Antimicrobial Resistance currently causes 25,000 annual deaths in Europe, with concomitant losses of 1.5 billion euros from medical expenses along with diminished productivity. It is estimated that AMR is responsible for more than 700,000 annual deaths worldwide. In 2050 it will become the most frequent cause of mortality, surpassing cancer.

   The veterinary sector is one of the main users of antibiotics; thus, on a European level, several programs have been initiated with the purpose of improving how those medicines are managed. The goal is to reduce their use over the next years. EU legislation, on the other hand, has established a series of control measures designed to avoid that antibiotics applied by vets become part of the food chain. In that sense, the legislation establishes that all operators in the food and animal feed sector are directly responsible for consumer safety of the foodstuffs they produce or sell.

2. Objective

   The objective of the research project is to control the presence of antibiotic residues in the food chain in La Rioja and Zaragoza, and to investigate their effect on antimicrobial resistance in bacteria found in meat.

   The presence of antibiotic residues, quinolones and sulphamides, will be evaluated in 2000 samples of different meat species (pig, beef). On other hand, characterization and identification of bacteria present in meat samples will be carried out and their antimicrobial resistance will be evaluated. Differences between meat samples depending if antibiotic residues are found or not will be further evaluated.

   The main objective is to reduce the presence of antibiotic residue
   in the meat production sector.

3. The linkage of the research project with the suitable Action Plan of Campus Iberus, as well as with any other activity implemented by the Campus of Excellence 

   The research activities proposed are part of the Interreg POCTEFA project TESTACOS (Development of a new solution for the auto-control monitoring in live animals in order to minimize the presence of antibiotic residues in the food chain in the area Spain-France).

   This is a European project, coordinated by Dr. Rafael Pagán, with the participation of 7 partner from Spain and France: 3 Universities (Zaragoza, La Rioja and Perpignan Via Domitia), a research center (INRA-Toulousse), 2 companies (BIOSENTEC (France) and ZEULAB (Spain), and public laboratory (LNSPB-Spain

   This is the second European project obtained by the Campus Iberus Action Group FOODIMPACT and it is being developed by four members of the Action Group (Universidad de Zaragoza, La Rioja, Perpignan Via Domitia and Zeulab

PHD Programme:

Programme in Biomedical and Biotechnology sciences

University of La Rioja

Supervisor short biography:

Elena Gonzalez-Fandos is professor in Food Technology in the Department of Agriculture and Food, University of La Rioja, Spain. She is involved in research and teaching activities in food safety, food quality and food technology since 1988. Her research is concerned with the control of foodborne pathogens and the understanding the factors that affect their growth and survival. She has participated in 31 research projects.  She has published more than 60 articles in international journals included in JCR. She is reviewer of more than 15 international journals. She has supervised 3 thesis. 

She participates in Campus Iberus Research lines, supported by Campus Iberus. The Action line supported is FOODIMPACT “Impact of new food technologies on the food quality, safety and nutrition value”.

She participates in the Interreg POCTEFA project entitled TESTACOS “Development of a new solution for the auto-control monitoring in live animals in order to minimize the presence of antibiotic residues in the food chain in the area Spain-France. Period 2018-2020. This project is coordinated by Rafael Pagán, University of Zaragoza. In this project participate members of Campus Iberus among others.

Co-supervisor: Rafael Pagán, University of Zaragoza.

Gross annual salary:

22.000-26.000 €

The employment contract in each recruiting institution will apply internal rules so final retribution might slightly differ.

Working hours:
37,5 hours a week

Dedication:
Full time