General: Molecular food safety
Specific:

• Development of DNA- and RNA-based methods for pathogen detection in foods
• Conventional, multiplex, and real-time PCR approaches to detect Bacillus spp. in dairy products and other foods
• DNA fingerprinting (rep-PCR), SYBR Green-based melt curve analyses, fluorescent molecular beacons, and real-time RNA amplification (NASBA - nucleic acid sequence-based amplification) to monitor enterotoxin gene expression in Bacillus cereus in contaminated foods

Cooper, R.M., & McKillip, J.L. 2006. Enterotoxigenic Bacillus ~pp. DNA fingerprint revealed in naturally contaminated nonfat fry milk powder. J: Basic Microbiol. 5:358-364

Gracias, K.S., Ying, R., & McKillip, J.L. 2007. Traditional and real-time triplex PCR-based detection of enterotoxigenic Bacillus cereus in milk. FoodMicrobiol., in press.

Gracias, K.S., & McKillip, J.L. 2007. Nucleic acid sequence- based amplification in molecular bacteriology: a proceduralguide. J: Rapid Methods Automation Microbiol., in press.