The role of truck wash practices in dissemination of Salmonella and Campylobacter in commercial swine production

This study investigated the sources of two foodborne pathogens, Salmonella and Campylobacter in a commercial swine production system. Pathogens were characterized using conventional culture and isolation techniques and antibiograms

Evaluation of phenotypic and genotypic approaches as predictors of Salmonella strains of clinical and non-clinical origin

This study investigated the possible phenotypic and genotypic similarities and differences between Salmonella isolates obtained from swine with clinical salmonellosis to isolates obtained from swine showing no clinical disease. Phenotypic analysis was done by antimicrobial resistance profiling and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) fingerprinting was employed for genotypic analysis

Use of heavy metals in swine feed and its association with the co-selection of metal tolerant and multi-drug resistant Salmonella

This study was conducted to characterize the role of chemical interventions, biocides and heavy metal micronutrients, in particular, in swine production systems on the emergence of heavy metal and biocide tolerant Salmonella and its association with antimicrobial resistance. A total of 353 Salmonella isolates with different antimicrobial resistance profiles identified from 36 barns exposed to three different classes of biocides were analyzed. The sources of isolates included feed (n=30), fecal (n=226), and environment (n=97) samples that were systematically selected

Phenotypic heterogeneity of Campylobacter coli isolated from conventional and antimicrobial free swine at farm and slaughter

The aim of this study was to determine the phenotypic and genotypic diversity of multiple Campylobacter coli isolates (n = 3) present in the same pig fecal and carcass samples at fann and slaughter, respectively. We isolated 1459 C. coli (1110 on farm and 349 from slaughter) from 908 pigs and 757 carcasses and characterized them for their antimicrobial susceptibility profile to a panel of six antimicrobials using the agar dilution method. A subset of 40 isolates representing 10 pigs and eight carcass samples were further genotyped by multi-locus sequence typing (MLST). Phenotypic diversity of C. coli isolates at the four fold minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) levels within the same sample was detected in 39% (n = 192) pigs and 40.2% (n = 58) carcass swabs with no significant difference between the two sources (P = 0.721). Phenotypic heterogeneity based on the resistance patterns was observed in 32.5% (n = 162) of the farm samples and in 30.5% (n = 44) carcass swabs at slaughter (P = 0.64). Genotypic diversity based on MLST was detected in the 40 isolates which were represented by 22 sequence types (ST). In conclusion, we detected multiple C. coli subtypes from individual pig or carcass samples. Our study clearly signifies the importance of testing multiple colonies to make appropriate and valid conclusions in epidemiological based studies

Prevalence and Antimicrobial Resistance of Salmonella, E. coli, and Campylobacter in Pigs from Swine Producing States in the United States

The purpose of the study was to determine the prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility of Salmonella, Campylobacter and generic E. coli (commensal bacteria which may harbor antimicrobial resistance genes) from swine feces collected over one year from the top three swine producing states (Iowa, North Carolina, and Minnesota), which represent 51% of the total pig crop in the U.S, plus Ohio. The prevalence of Salmonella (n=462/4426), Campylobacter (n=994/1184) and E. coli (n=833/845) at the sample level was 10.4%, 98.6% and 83.6%, respectively

Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in market age pigs on-farm, at slaughter and retail pork

This study was conducted to determine the occurrence and prevalence of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in finishing pigs on-farm, at lairage and assess the likelihood of carriage at slaughter and retail levels. A cross-sectional study targeting ten cohorts of commercial swine farms was conducted for carriage of MRSA

Multidrug Resistant and toxigenic Clostridium difficile isolated from commercial swine and humans

This study was conducted to compare C. difficile population in commercial swine with those causing C. difficile associated diarrhea (CDAD) cases in humans. Fecal samples were collected from sows (eight per fam1) and piglets (30 per fam1) in eight farms in North Carolina (n=5) and Ohio (n=3) representing a total of 68 sows and 251 piglets. In addition, 33 C. difficile isolates were collected from CDAD cases in humans from the NC region. C. difficile isolates were tested for their susceptibility to a panel of six antimicrobials. PCR was used to detect genes coding for enterotoxin A (tcdA), cytotoxin B (tcdB) and the binary toxin (COT). We detected significantly higher piglet prevalence in Ohio (87.5%) than North Carolina (64%) (P \u3c 0.001)