Polymers and Biopolymers with Antiviral Activity - Review about potential applications for improving Food Safety

Gastroenteritis and hepatitis, caused by human noroviruses (HuNoVs) and hepatitis A virus (HAV), respec-tively, are the most common illnesses resulting from the consumption of food contaminated with human enteric viruses.Food-grade polymers can be tailor designed to improve food safety, either as novel food-packaging materials impartingactive antimicrobial properties, applied in food contact surfaces to avoid cross-contamination, or as edible coatings toincrease fresh produce?s shelf life. The incorporation of antimicrobial agents into food-grade polymers can be used tocontrol the food microbiota and even target speci?c foodborne pathogens to improve microbiological food safety andto enhance food quality. Enteric viruses are responsible for one ?fth of acute gastroenteritis cases worldwide and thedevelopment of food-grade polymers and biopolymers with antiviral activity for food applications is a topic of increasedinterest, both for academia and the food industry, even though developments are still limited. This review compiles existing studies in this widely unexplored area and highlights the potential of these developments to improve viral foodsafety. ? SourcesPolymers and Biopolymers with Antiviral Activity: Potential Applications for Improving Food SafetyWalter Randazzo, Mar?a Jos? Fabra, Irene Falc?, Amparo L?pez-Rubio, and Gloria S?nchezComprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food SafetyFigure ? Diagram of the methods used for assessing the antiviral activity of food-grade polymers or biopolymers; figure 1 from the original paper