Prevalence, species diversity, and antimicrobial susceptibility of Campylobacter strains in patients with diarrhea and poultry meat samples: one-year prospective study

Atena Sadeghi; Leila Ganji; Fereshteh Fani; Gholamreza Pouladfar; Parisa Eslami; Fatemeh Doregiraee; Parviz Owlia; Masoud Alebouyeh

doi:10.18502/ijm.v14i3.9775

Atena Sadeghi Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran
Leila Ganji Department of Microbiology, Iranian Reference Health Laboratory Research Center, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran
Fereshteh Fani Professor Alborzi Clinical Microbiology Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
Gholamreza Pouladfar Professor Alborzi Clinical Microbiology Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
Parisa Eslami Department of Microbiology, Central Laboratory, Milad Hospital, Tehran, Iran
Fatemeh Doregiraee Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
Parviz Owlia Molecular Microbiology Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran
Masoud Alebouyeh Pediatric Infections Research Center, Research Institute for Children’s Health, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/ijm.v14i3.9775

Keywords: Foodborne diseases; Campylobacter; Drug resistance; Diarrhea; Poultry

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Source tracking of antimicrobial resistance in Campylobacter is useful for control measures. In this study, Campylobacter-associated diarrhea and homology in antimicrobial resistance of humans and poultry meat isolates were investigated.

Materials and Methods: A total of 400 stools of patients and 100 poultry meat samples were analyzed. Susceptibility of the isolates was detected by disk diffusion, Etest, and. agar dilution methods. Mismatch amplification mutation assay was used for the detection of mutations in the gyrA quinolone resistance determining region (QRDR).

Results: Campylobacter spp., including C. jejuni, C. coli, and C. lari, were detected in 35% of the chicken meat and 6.75% of the stool samples, respectively. The QRDR mutation was detected in most of the stool and chicken meat samples. Although the frequency of resistance to tetracycline (53.5% and 62.8%), erythromycin (39.2% and 37.1%), and gentamicin (32.1% and. 31.4%) was relatively similar, higher frequency of resistance to ciprofloxacin (51.4% vs 28.6%) and nalidixic acid (42.15% vs 28.6%) among the chicken meat, and ampicillin (50% and 17.1%) among the human stool was detected.

Conclusion: High percentage of poultry meat samples is contaminated with different Campylobacter species, which shows homology with the patients’ isolates in Tehran.