Abstract
Salmonella spp. are an important group of bacterial zoonotic pathogens which can cause acute food-borne diseases in humans. Pork products are the main source of salmonellosis, but the origins and transmission routes of the disease have not been clearly determined. The purpose of this study was to characterize Salmonella spp. isolated in pig production lines both from pig farms and from slaughterhouses in Chiang Mai and Lamphun provinces in northern Thailand. The study focuses on the association among serotypes, antimicrobial resistance patterns and Pulse Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) patterns to investigate possible sources of infection and to provide information which could help strengthen salmonellosis control programs in the region. A total of 86 strains of Salmonella comprising five majority serotypes were identified. Antibiotic resistance to tetracycline was found to be the most prevalent (82.56%) followed by ampicillin (81.40%) and streptomycin (63.95%). Seven clusters and 28 fingerprint-patterns generated by PFGE were identified among strains recovered from various locations and at different times, providing information on associations among the strains as well as evidence of the existence of persistent strains in some areas. Study results suggest that Salmonella control programs should be implemented at slaughterhouse production lines, including surveillance to insure good hygiene practices, in addition to regular monitoring of large populations of farm animals.
Highlights
Salmonella has long been associated with food-borne illnesses and is responsible for high rates of morbidity in humans [1,2]
Comparison of the antimicrobial resistance ability of Salmonella from the two sampling areas showed that resistance to ampicillin, sulfa-trimethoprim, chloramphenicol and streptomycin was greater in samples obtained from Lamphun than in samples from Chiang Mai (Fig. 2)
Almost all resistance rates in Salmonella obtained from Chiang Mai were lower than those from Lamphun, even though the opportunity to obtain accurate information on antimicrobial use by farm owners was greater in Chiang Mai than in Lamphun
Summary
Salmonella has long been associated with food-borne illnesses and is responsible for high rates of morbidity in humans [1,2]. This organism results in significant economic losses and represents a major public health concern worldwide [3,4]. Approximately 90 million cases of gastroenteritis due to Salmonella occur annually [5]. There have been many reports of salmonellosis in the northern, central and eastern regions of Thailand [6,7,8]. The origins and transmission routes of the disease, have not been clearly determined.
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