Detection of Phage and Prophage Expression in Multidrug-Resistant Salmonella Serovars Isolated from Retail Meats Using mRNA-Seq

Abstract

Background: Salmonella serovars contamination of food items shows a negative effect on the food industry and causes a great hazard for the consumers. Although developed hygiene methods, Salmonella serovars are still a high risk to human health, and new methods for the identification of Salmonella spp. are needed. Objective: Bacteriophages have been considered a good method for detecting bacteria owing to their high target cell specificity, simplicity and cheapness. Bacteriophages can be used for biocontrol of Salmonella spp. without the cultural methods. Moreover, phages or phage-derived proteins can also be used to detect quickly and specifically bacteria in food. Method: This study provides bacteriophage expression in six multidrug-resistant Salmonella isolated from retail meats in Hanoi, Vietnam using mRNA sequencing. Results: Our results showed that diverse bacteriophages are naturally present in retail meats (chicken, beef, and pork meat), and phage Salmon_118970_sal3_NC_031940 is the most common phage in Salmonella on the retail meats. Conclusion: These results provide useful information for developing a new method to detect Salmonella serovars effectively. Further surveillance programs and research are a necessity to limit the spread of multidrug-resistant Salmonella spp.