title: Campylobacter in broiler slaughter samples assessed by direct count on mCCDA and Campy-Cefex agar.
abstract: Campylobacter spp. cause foodborne illnesses in humans primarily through the consumption of contaminated chicken. The aim of this study was to evaluate the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) recommended methodology, protocol MLG 41.02, for the isolation, identification and direct plate counting of Campylobacter jejuni and C. coli samples from the broiler slaughtering process. A plating method using both mCCDA and Campy-Cefex agars is recommended to recover Campylobacter cells. It is also possible to use this method in different matrices (cloacal swabs and water samples). Cloacal swabs, samples from pre-chiller and post-chiller carcasses and samples of pre-chiller, chiller and direct supply water were collected each week for four weeks from the same flock at a slaughterhouse located in an abattoir in southern Brazil. Samples were analyzed to directly count Campylobacter spp., and the results showed a high frequency of Campylobacter spp. on Campy-Cefex agar. For the isolated species, 72% were identified as Campylobacter jejuni and 38% as Campylobacter coli. It was possible to count Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli from different samples, including the water supply samples, using the two-agar method. These results suggest that slaughterhouses can use direct counting methods with both agars and different matrices as a monitoring tool to assess the presence of Campylobacter bacteria in their products.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Diagnóstico e Pesquisa em Patologia Aviária (CDPA) - FAVET/UFRGS - Lab. Central - Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil. Electronic address: anderliseb@yahoo.com.br.
authors.forename: Camila Cristina
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Gonsalves
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Patologia Experimental e Comparada - Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (USP), Brazil.
authors.forename: Anderlise
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Borsoi
authors.affiliation: Centro de Diagnóstico e Pesquisa em Patologia Aviária (CDPA) - FAVET/UFRGS - Lab. Central - Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Gustavo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Perdoncini
authors.affiliation: Curso de Medicina Veterinária da Faculdade de Agronomia e Medicina Veterinária da Universidade de Passo Fundo (UPF), Brazil.
authors.forename: Laura Beatriz
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.affiliation: Centro de Diagnóstico e Pesquisa em Patologia Aviária (CDPA) - FAVET/UFRGS - Lab. Central - Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vladimir Pinheiro
authors.initials: VP
authors.lastname: do Nascimento
mesh_terms: D000003:Abattoirs; D000818:Animals; D058491:Bacterial Load / Q000379:methods*; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques / Q000379:methods; D002167:Campylobacter / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002645:Chickens / Q000382:microbiology*; D005516:Food Microbiology; D006801:Humans
keywords: Agar plate count; Broiler; Campy-Cefex; Campylobacter; mCCDA