Investigation of presence and antibiotic resistance of Salmonella typhimurium and Salmonella enteriditis in poultry meat

Objective: Poultry meat creates a suitable environment for the growth of organisms due to its high nutritional values. When poultry meat is handled under inappropriate conditions, both in the enterprises where poultry is raised and in steps such as slaughter, processing, packaging, preservation and distribution, poultry meat can be contaminated with pathogenic bacteria such as Salmonella spp. and its consumption can become risky for public health. Salmonella, which is among the pathogens that cause foodborne diseases; it causes infections that are extremely important for human health. Processing or consuming contaminated poultry, especially chicken meat, allows Salmonella to pass to humans. Poultry meat and poultry meat products come first in foodborne Salmonella infections. Illnesses, clinical costs, and death cases resulting from infections resulting from the consumption of these products pose problems both in terms of health and socioeconomic aspects. The infective predominant subspecies in Salmonella spp. contaminations include Salmonella Enteritidis and Salmonella Typhimurium. Considering these, this study aimed to determine the presence and antibiotic resistance of Salmonella Enteritidis and Salmonella Typhimurium. Material and Methods: Within the scope of the research, a total of 160 raw poultry meat samples, including 53 wings, 53 skinless breasts and 54 legs, which were offered for sale in the Aydın market as packaged or unpackaged, were collected between November and May 2021, analyzed and the antibiotic resistance of the isolated factors was determined. Results: 43 of the 160 samples examined were identified as Salmonella spp. isolated. It was determined that 23 of these 43 isolates were wing, 12 were skinless breast and 8 were leg. Proportionally, 26.9% of 160 total poultry meat samples, 43.4% of 53 wing samples, 22.6% of 53 skinless breast samples and 14.8% of 54 leg samples contained Salmonella spp. Conclusion: Salmonella Enteritidis and Salmonella Typhimurium strains, which should not be present in poultry meat samples according to Turkish Food Codex (TGK) data, were found at varying rates. It has been revealed that the antibiotic resistance determined in the isolates is very high for some antibiotics and the presence of isolates showing multidrug resistance among them may cause problems for public health. It has been concluded that in order to prevent possible contamination, it is necessary to apply HACCP systems as well as good production and good hygiene practices. Keywords: Antibiotic Resistance, Poultry Meat, Public Health, Salmonella Enteritidis, Salmonella Typhimurium