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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Ames, Iowa » National Animal Disease Center » Food Safety and Enteric Pathogens Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #170319
Title: DISTRIBUTION OF CAMPYLOBACTER JEJUNI (CJ) AND CAMPYLOBACTER COLI (CC) IN MARKET WEIGHT TURKEYS PRE- AND POST-TRANSPORT: COMPARATIVE PREVALENCE IN CLOACAL SWABS, CROP AND CECA

Author
item WESLEY, IRENE
item MURAOKA, WAYNE
item BOUCHARD, CHRISTOPHER
item SCUPHAM, ALEXANDRA
item TRAMPEL, D - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY

Submitted to: Food Safety Consortium Proceedings
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/3/2004
Publication Date: 10/3/2004
Citation: Wesley, I.V., Muraoka, W.T., Bouchard, C.T., Scupham, A.J., Trampel, D. 2004. Distribution of Campylobacter jejuni (CJ) and Campylobacter coli (CC) in market weight turkeys pre- and post-transport: comparative prevalence in cloacal swabs, crop and ceca [abstract]. In: The Food Safety Consortium Annual Meeting, October 3-5, 2004, Ames, Iowa. 2004 CDROM.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: GOAL: To compare the prevalence of Campylobacter from market-weight turkeys pre-and post-transport on six farms (January through March 2004). METHODS: To determine baseline prevalence of Campylobacter, cloacal swabs (n = 120) were collected on-farm (Time 1) within 24 hours of transport. At the abattoir after transport and holding (Time 2), cloacal swabs (n = 120) of birds from the same flock were taken prior to stunning and placed in blood-free enrichment broth (BFEB). Crops (n = 50) and ceca (n = 50) were harvested immediately after evisceration, transported to the laboratory where 10% suspensions were prepared in buffered peptone water, enriched (24 hours, 42 C), and subcultured to Campy Cefex agar. Presumptive Campylobacter colonies (3 per plate) were plated to blood agar and speciated by PCR. RESULTS: Overall, the on-farm (Time 1) prevalence of Campylobacter ranged from 70-100%. After transport and holding (Time 2), the prevalence was unchanged (86% to 100%). The average time off feed was 7.28 +/- 6 hours. When Campylobacter spp. prevalence was evaluated for individual farms, Time 2 prevalence was higher on one of the six premises (0.02 p < 0.05). Likewise, although there were no significant differences in the prevalence of C. jejuni and C. coli between Time 1 and Time 2 when data from all farms were combined, statistically significant differences emerged when individual farms were analyzed. Campylobacter spp. was recovered more frequently from the ceca (67.4%) than from the crop (26.3%) when data from all farms was combined. By X**2 analysis, individual differences between farms again emerged for ceca and crop in the prevalence of C. jejuni, C. coli, and concurrently positive birds. CONCLUSION: The subtle shifts associated with "transport stress" are evident when individual organs from individual flocks are evaluated. This may reflect either differences in on-farm management practices for each of the six premises, seasonality, or lack of adequately sensitive analytical methods to critically evaluate the impact of transport stress on the dynamics of Campylobacter.