title: Prevalence and antimicrobial resistance of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli isolated from raw chicken meat and human stools in Korea.
abstract: Prevalence of Campylobacter in raw chicken meat and human stools and subsequent antibiotic resistance profiles of the pathogenic isolates obtained from 2000 through 2002 were investigated. Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli were isolated from 570 of the 923 raw chicken meat samples collected from traditional markets, large retail stores, or department stores in Korea, resulting in the isolation rate of 61.8%. A total of 579 Campylobacter isolates were obtained from raw chicken (36.3% for C. jejuni and 26.4% for C. coli) with the average population of 335.6 CFU/g. From 513 human stool samples, 15 isolates of Campylobacter were detected. Seasonal variation in the quantification of C. coli was not noticeable throughout the year, while the isolation rate of C. jejuni was the highest in September through October (840 CFU/g) followed by that of July through August and May through June in decreasing order, showing a significant seasonal effect (P < 0.05). Contamination of Campylobacter was more severe in raw chicken meat sold in traditional markets than in those sold in large retail stores and department stores. Prevalence of Campylobacter in raw chicken sold in traditional markets was significantly influenced by seasonal changes (P < 0.05), whereas the samples obtained from other places was less affected by the seasonal changes. Susceptibilities of the 594 chicken isolates to ciprofloxaxin, chloramphenicol, erythromycin, kanamycin, nalidixic acid, and tetracycline were determined by an E-test. Campylobacter isolates were the most resistant to nalidixic acid (91.4%) followed by ciprofloxaxin (87.9%), tetracycline (87.2%), kanamycin (30.6%), erythromycin (19.4%), and chloramphenicol (1.3%). Human isolates showed a similar resistance to the six antibiotics tested. The proportion of Campylobacter isolates with multidrug resistance to four or more antimicrobials obtained from 2000 through 2002 ranged from 28 to 43.5%, indicating that it could be a serious health-threatening factor. This study suggests that it is prudent to establish an effective National Monitoring Program in Korea for the prevention and control of Campylobacter spp.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 120-749, Korea.
authors.forename: Yun-Sook
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: Yong-Sun
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Sun-Kyung
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Yoon
authors.forename: Myeong-Ae
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Chang-Min
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Jong-Ok
authors.initials: JO
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Yu-Ryang
authors.initials: YR
authors.lastname: Pyun
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017000:Campylobacter coli / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016123:Campylobacter jejuni / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002645:Chickens; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D003257:Consumer Product Safety; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial; D024901:Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D008460:Meat / Q000382:microbiology*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D015995:Prevalence; D012621:Seasons
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents