by Paula Kurtzweil
Aside from the occasional opening and closing of a refrigerator door and the padding of footsteps to and from the laboratory bench, it's a quiet May morning in a Food and Drug Administration laboratory in suburban Washington, D.C. Six or so researchers working alone or in a group of two or three prepare test tubes, calibrate instruments, and analyze chemical data.
Though their conversation is minimal, their work is not: These researchers, employed by FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine, are addressing one of today's most pressing health concerns: antibiotic resistance in humans. The researchers hope to answer such questions as "What causes microbial pathogens in food animals to develop antibiotic resistance?" "Can scientists overcome this resistance?" "How can this transfer of resistant pathogens to humans be minimized?"
At other sites in the Washington area, research is focused on such important health issues as lycopene, an antioxidant found in tomatoes and some fruits that may help lower the risk for certain diseases (such as cancer and heart disease), and "biofilms," groups of bacteria often encased in a protective-like layer that cannot be penetrated by standard cleaning solutions.
This research is being done under the auspices of the Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (JIFSAN). Through research and education, the institute, a cooperative program between FDA and the University of Maryland, will help ensure the safety and nutritional quality of the U.S. food supply. By pooling their resources, the university and FDA look to gain both professional and public-health benefits.
FDA hopes the studies will add to its scientific knowledge and contribute to future regulatory decisions. This plan is consistent with the agency's longstanding policy of relying on science as the basis of all agency decisions. "JIFSAN provides a unique approach to increasing FDA's science base," says David Lineback, Ph.D., JIFSAN director.
The education portion will focus on training various professional and regulatory groups--including those in foreign countries--in key food safety and nutrition practices.
Created in 1996, JIFSAN is one of two such FDA food programs centralized in institutions of higher education with both government and industry involvement. The other program is the National Center for Food Safety and Technology (NCFST) in Summit-Argo, Ill. Created in 1988, this consortium of government, industry, and academia is financially supported by FDA and the Illinois Institute of Technology, the IIT Research Institute, and the University of Illinois. (See "Food Safety Research Center Offers Taste of the Future" in the December 1991 FDA Consumer.)
"To a large extent, the future development of food regulatory science and policies for the United States is dependent upon the success of these programs," Lineback says.
JIFSAN Features
Both JIFSAN and NCFST are set up to allow researchers to remain affiliated with their respective employers, although personnel may work in facilities belonging to another group. Also, each organization has an internal review board, as well as an advisory committee of experts from industry, academia, government, and consumer organizations.
NCFST focuses on the safety of food processing and packaging technologies, applied microbiology, and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) food safety programs. JIFSAN focuses on a range of food safety and nutrition issues, including risk analysis, food composition, toxins and microbial pathogens, animal drug residues, and animal health. "JIFSAN will be a more all-encompassing program," Lineback says.
Also, JIFSAN serves as a World Health Organization Food Safety Collaborating Center, focusing on risk assessment of contaminants in food and mycotoxin analysis. Mycotoxins are poisonous substances formed by mold in wheat, corn, peanuts, and other major food crops.
According to Lineback, plans to relocate FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition from Washington, D.C., to suburban College Park, Md., near the University of Maryland campus, will allow for easier collaboration between the two institutions. Some JIFSAN research also is done at FDA laboratories in Laurel, Md., about 10 miles from College Park.
The proximity of FDA headquarters and the University of Maryland was a major reason FDA chose the university for the JIFSAN collaborative effort. "The proximity allows for ease of collaboration," says Norris Alderson, Ph.D., director of research for FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine. "And, the University of Maryland is one of the premier research universities in the Washington, D.C., area."
JIFSAN officials say the close proximity will:
Investigations Under Way
JIFSAN is using more than $500,000 in research funds for various studies, including:
In addition, JIFSAN has sponsored several international workshops and training programs. One dealt with transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), progressively degenerative central nervous system diseases of humans and animals. One TSE that has been widely reported is bovine spongiform encephalopathy, often referred to in the popular press as "mad cow disease." Another training program was aimed at educating foreign health officials whose countries export foods to the United States on how to detect mycotoxins in foods.
Creative Science
Deciding what topics to focus on is somewhat of a collaborative effort itself. Yearly, a JIFSAN committee of University of Maryland faculty and FDA staff reviews and selects for funding research proposals created and submitted by university researchers, working alone or with FDA scientists.
To receive funding, proposals must meet two criteria: They must be grounded in science, and they must deal with a regulatory food safety or nutrition issue. "We're looking for creative research that reflects FDA's regulatory program priorities," Page says.
The JIFSAN committee reviews the progress of research projects yearly to determine which ones should continue to be funded. In many cases, Page says, the initial funding is allocated with the hope that the research will eventually qualify for other grants from additional federal, university or industry sources.
With this kind of support, plus the backing of a five-year formal agreement between FDA and the University of Maryland, JIFSAN hopes its research will lead to sound solutions to one of today's most perplexing questions: "How can we keep America's food supply safe and nutritious?"
Paula Kurtzweil wrote this article while a member of FDA's public affairs staff. She is now with the Federal Trade Commission.
This is a mirror of the page at http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2000/100_jfsan.html