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Genomic insight into a festival-linked foodborne outbreak caused by enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus ST1-t321 in the Republic of Korea[1]

Park YJ, Han J, Kang W, Seo Y, Hong M, Lee SY, Yoo J, Kim J, Shin E · 2026 · Osong Public Health Res Perspect

Summary

Whole-genome-sequencing investigation (Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency) of a large foodborne outbreak of enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus at a local festival: 141 suspected and 18 laboratory-confirmed cases; 24 isolates (18 patient, 3 food, 3 environmental). All genomically analyzed isolates carried the sea and sec enterotoxin genes, belonged to ST1-t321 with 8-33 SNP pairwise differences (clonal), and showed a previously unreported Korean PFGE pattern; virulence profiling found hemolysin, leukocidin, and immune-evasion genes; all were methicillin-susceptible. Concludes a SINGLE contaminated food source can cause widespread illness at a mass gathering, and demonstrates genomic surveillance for early outbreak detection.

So what

The outbreak-case counterpart to the Arbaeen prevalence study, and the demonstration that a single catering failure scales to a festival-wide event: 141 cases from one clonal source, traced by whole-genome sequencing. For MGMI it connects the food-safety shelf to the genomic-surveillance layer (Falender wastewater, Wang syndromic) and gives the Catering chapter a modern worked example of why single-source vendor controls and rapid typing matter. The enterotoxin (sea/sec) detail explains the rapid-onset vomiting pattern planners see in festival food outbreaks.

Key findings

  • Festival S. aureus outbreak: 141 suspected, 18 confirmed cases
  • 24 isolates (patient/food/environmental); clonal ST1-t321, sea+sec enterotoxin genes
  • 8-33 SNP differences confirm single-source origin via WGS
  • Novel Korean PFGE pattern; methicillin-susceptible
  • One contaminated source scales festival-wide; genomic surveillance enables early detection

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