10. Conclusions and future perspectives
During the last two decades numerous rapid methods for the
identification of foodborne bacteria have been developed. Although
cultivation techniques suffer from several drawbacks, their
importance remains high because rapid methods continue to have
limitations. Innovative techniques and methodical improvements
have boosted the potential of FISH to detect foodborne pathogens
although many of these beneficial advancements have not yet been
adequately transferred to the routine use of FISH in food microbiology.
The need for efficient pathogen concentration and separation
from the food matrix to overcome or minimize cultural preenrichment,
the pivotal implementation of high-performance
modular systems for automated FISH analyses and the establishment
of standardized protocols are future challenges, which have to
be further addressed.