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Caco-2 cytotoxicity assay demonstrated\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                      cytotoxicity as B3 cell-free supernatant reduced cell viability at 20% (vol\/vol). The food safety implications of Bt product treatment in hydroponic systems cultivating lettuce were monitored for 5 weeks with polymyxin pyruvate egg yolk mannitol bromothymol blue agar to enumerate\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">B. cereus<\/jats:italic>\n                      group populations. Throughout the cultivation period,\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">B. cereus<\/jats:italic>\n                      group populations were significantly greater in reservoirs and surfaces of treated systems than controls (\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">P<\/jats:italic>\n                      &lt; 0.05), which demonstrated sustained elevation of\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">B. cereus<\/jats:italic>\n                      group populations associated with Bt product application. In contrast, the populations on edible lettuce parts remained at 3.46 \u00b1 0.35 log CFU\/g, which was insignificantly different from the control group (\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">P<\/jats:italic>\n                      &gt; 0.05). Changes in the lettuce leaf microbiome composition and functions also appeared unlikely to compromise food safety. Overall, these results indicate that Bt product usage in hydroponics may increase system-wide\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">B. cereus<\/jats:italic>\n                      group, but the population levels in the edible parts remain below 5 log CFU\/g, the threshold associated with diarrhea syndrome. Moreover, 16S rRNA gene analysis of the Bt product revealed the presence of non-\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Bacillus<\/jats:italic>\n                      genera, emphasizing the importance of quality control measures for microbial plant-beneficial products.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                    <jats:sec>\n                      <jats:title>IMPORTANCE<\/jats:title>\n                      <jats:p>\n                        Safety evaluations of biologically derived fertilizers and control agents are essential to ensure that crops grown in treated systems are safe for consumption. This includes an assessment of the production composition for contaminants, the potential of the intended organism to cause foodborne illnesses, and any effects on the microbiological quality of the crop. These considerations are especially critical in hydroponic systems, where the recirculating system can amplify the spread and persistence of applied products. In this study, we investigated the safety of a commercial\n                        <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Bacillus thuringiensis<\/jats:italic>\n                        product due to its widespread use in agriculture and close genomic similarity to the foodborne pathogen\n                        <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Bacillus cereus<\/jats:italic>\n                        . Our findings underscore the importance of considering the food safety implications when applying biological products in hydroponics and lay the groundwork for safety evaluations of these inputs in food production systems.\n                      <\/jats:p>\n                    <\/jats:sec>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1128\/aem.00885-26","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,10]],"date-time":"2026-07-10T14:39:52Z","timestamp":1783694392000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1128\/asmj-crossmark-policy-page","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Insights into the food safety implications of a commercial\n                    <i>Bacillus thuringiensis<\/i>\n                    product in hydroponic systems"],"prefix":"10.1128","volume":"92","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0002-0718-1222","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Michelle Mei 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