Publication Database

Campylobacter spp. transmissions in the environment of commercial poultry farms in Germany (2022)

Art

Vortrag

Autoren

Reichelt, Benjamin (WE 10)

Szott, Vanessa (WE 10)

Lennard, Epping

Semmler, Torsten

Merle, Roswitha (WE 16)

Roesler, Uwe (WE 10)

Friese, Annika (WE 10)

Kongress

ISAH 2022

Berlin, 05. – 07.10.2022

Quelle

ISAH 2022 : 20th Congress of the International Society for Animal Hygiene — Freie Universität Berlin (Hrsg.)

Berlin, 2022 — S. 63–64

Sprache

Englisch

Verweise

URL (Volltext): https://www.vetmed.fu-berlin.de/en/einrichtungen/institute/we10/ISAH-2022/_downloads/Abstract-Book-ISAH2022.pdf

Kontakt

Institut für Tier- und Umwelthygiene

Robert-von-Ostertag-Str. 7-13
14169 Berlin
+49 30 838 51845
tierhygiene@vetmed.fu-berlin.de

Abstract / Zusammenfassung

Introduction
Campylobacter (C.) jejuni is the most common cause of campylobacteriosis in humans, and broiler meat is considered one of the major sources. In general, it is believed that the poultry house environment may be a reservoir for Campylobacter spp. to some extent. However, to date, there are limited data on the spillover of Campylobacter from houses with Campylobacter-positive flocks and the buildup of environmental reservoirs. In addition, Campylobacter spp. are capable to transit into a viable but non-culturable (VBNC) state as a result of various extrinsic stress factors. In order to identify possible reservoirs of persistent and VBNC-Campylobacter and thus uncover relevant transmission pathways, a longitudinal study was conducted.
Material & Methods
Three broiler farms and their environment close to the barn were intensively investigated at the end of two consecutive fattening cycles in summer and winter. In order to draw careful conclusions about possible transmission between consecutive fattening cycles, the selected farms were also examined after cleaning and disinfection. All samples were processed according to the semi-quantitative method for the detection and enumeration of Campylobacter spp. (ISO/TS 10272-3). Selected isolates were species-typed by MALDI-ToF analyses. A systematic selection of isolates from all sampling collections was examined by whole genome analyses. Moreover, environmental and selected broiler house samples were treated simultaneously with propidium monoazide (PMA) and analyzed by live/dead discrimination using real-time PCR (qPCR) in the further course of the study
Results
In two out of three farms, Campylobacter was frequently detected in high amounts in the chicken barns, especially in summer. However, the pathogen was only occasionally detectable in the environment, particularly in water-associated matrices, especially in winter. However, Campylobacter could not be isolated in broiler houses after cleaning and disinfection. The emission source of culturable Campylobacter was found to be primarily contaminated chicken manure. C. jejuni proved to be the dominant species of the isolates examined. PMA-qPCR revealed no detection of VBNC-Campylobacter in selected barn and environmental samples. In contrast, Campylobacter DNA was more frequent detected in environmental samples.
Discussion
The present study provides insight into the significance of Campylobacter in the environment in relation to prevalence in the broiler farms investigated in Germany. The results established indicate sporadic environmental findings in the immediate vicinity, suggesting spread, persistence and possible reintroduction. C. jejuni was found in nearby water bodies, indicating that the pathogen is ubiquitous by spread and circulation. Although the findings were sporadic and no significant source of transmission has yet been identified, it should be kept in mind that even very low levels of Campylobacter may initiate the colonization of whole poultry flocks.
Acknowledgement & Funding

We acknowledge the department of Genome Sequencing and Genomic Epidemiology at the Robert Koch Institute providing WGS analysis and bioinformatics. We would like to thank our colleagues at the Institute for Animal Hygiene and Environmental Health for excellent technical support.
We acknowledge support by the Open Access Publication Initiative of Freie Universität Berlin.This work was financially supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) within the framework of the consortium “PAC-Campy” (IP1/01KI1725A).