Campylobacter coli no fluxograma de abate de suínos e pesquisa dos genes cdt / Campylobacter coli in swine slaughtering flowchart and research of cdt genes

ABSTRACT

Background: Campylobacter spp. are among the microorganisms most commonly associated with foodborne disease. Campylobacter spp. isolation from pigs during the slaughter and final products have been reported in several countries, including Brazil. However, very little is known about the sources of contamination in the slaughtering flowchart and how these microorganisms are spread in processing plants. Considering the possibility of the pigs carry Campylobacter spp. since the farm or its products are contaminated in the slaughterhouse, this study had as aim to track Campylobacter spp. in pig slaughtering flowchart to understand the behavior of these pathogens in the production line.Materials, Methods & Results: Forty animals of 10 lots, four from each lot, were followed during slaughter. Stool samples were collected from the floor of each enclosure where the pigs were housed on the farm and immediately after stunning on slaughterhouse. Samples from carcass surface were collected after removal of the animals from scrap machine, after evisceration and before the refrigeration chamber. It was also collected surface samples from jowls and samples from the scalding tank water before and after the passage of animals. The swabs containing samples were plated onto Columbia agar supplemented with activated charcoal, oxygen reduction solution and antibiotics supplement, and incubated at 42°C for 48 h under microaerobic conditions. The colonies which presented with a shiny and moist appearance were analyzed by Gram staining for identification of Campylobacter by morphology, and then tested for catalase and oxidase. The Campylobacter isolates were identified for species C. jejuni or C. coli by PCR. Bands profiles were determined by rep-PCR and used to compare the strains. Campylobacter was isolated from 19 (9.5%) of the 200 pig samples analyzed, seven (36.8%) of the rectum, seven (36.8%) after evisceration and five (26.3%) before the refrigeration chamber.[...]