Salmonella enterica isolates from pasture-raised poultry exhibit antimicrobial resistance and class I integrons.
OBJECTIVE
While considerable foodborne pathogen research has been conducted on conventionally produced broilers and turkeys, few studies have focused on free-range (organic) or pastured poultry. The current surveillance study was designed to isolate, identify and genetically characterize Salmonella from pastured poultry farm environment and from retail samples.


RESULTS
In this study, 59 isolates were collected from two pastured poultry farms (n = 164; pens, feed, water and insect traps) and retail carcasses (n = 36) from a local natural foods store and a local processing plant. All isolates were serotyped and analysed phenotypically (antimicrobial resistance profiles) and genotypically (DNA fingerprints, plasmid profiles and integron analysis). Salmonella enterica was detected using standard microbiological methods. Salmonella Kentucky was the most prevalent serotype detected from the sampled sources (53%), followed by Salmonella Enteritidis (24%), Bareilly (10%), Mbandaka (7%), Montevideo (5%) or Newport (2%). All isolates were resistant to sulfisoxazole and novobiocin, and the majority (40/59) possessed class I integrons shown by PCR detection. Each Salmonella serotype elicited a distinct pulsed-field gel electrophoresis fingerprint profile, and unique differences were observed among the serotypes.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings of this study show that Salmonella serotypes isolated from pasture-raised poultry exhibit antimicrobial resistance and class I integrons.


CONCLUSIONS
This study demonstrates that despite the cessation of antibiotic usage in poultry production, antibiotic resistant Salmonella may still be recovered from the environment and poultry products.
Melendez
S N
SN
The Department of Food Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, USA.
Hanning
I
I
Han
J
J
Nayak
R
R
Clement
A R
AR
Wooming
A
A
Hererra
P
P
Jones
F T
FT
Foley
S L
SL
Ricke
S C
SC
D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D016172:DNA Fingerprinting; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D024901:Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D005516:Food Microbiology; D032023:Integrons; D008460:Meat / Q000382:microbiology*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D010957:Plasmids / Q000235:genetics; D011200:Poultry / Q000382:microbiology*; D019779:Salmonella enterica / Q000145:classification / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012703:Serotyping
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D004269:DNA, Bacterial