Prevalence and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profile ofSalmonellaSerovars Isolated from Slaughtered Cattle in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Abstract

Salmonellais one of the top causes of foodborne bacterial illnesses in humans. The primary sources of humanSalmonellainfection are food producing animals such as cattle, poultry, and swine. A cross-sectional study was undertaken to estimate the prevalence and to determine the serovar distribution and antimicrobial susceptibility profiles ofSalmonellaspp. isolated from fecal (n=567) and carcass swab (n=159) samples of slaughtered cattle at Addis Ababa Abattoir Enterprise and Kara’alo PLC, Abattoirs, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia between January 2014 and April 2015.Salmonellaisolation was conducted according to Global Foodborne Infections Network Laboratory Protocol and isolates were confirmed by genus specific PCR and serotyped by slide agglutination test. Susceptibility of the isolates to 17 antimicrobials was testedusing the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method according to the guidelines of the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute. Out of the total 726 samples examined, 27 (3.7%) were positive forSalmonella. Salmonellawas detected in 4.1% (23/567) fecal and 2.5% (4/159) carcass swab samples. Twelve different serovars were identified and the most predominant serovars wereS. Dublin (n=10, 35.7%) andS. Virchow (n=5, 17.9%), followed byS. Braendrerup,S. Haifa, andS. Saintpaul which were isolated from 2 samples each (7.1%). All of theSalmonellaisolates investigated were resistant or intermediately resistant to four or more of the 17 drugs tested. High resistance rate was recorded to streptomycin 25 (89.3%), cephalothin 20 (71.4%), ampicillin 19 (67.9%), and amoxicillin+clavulanic acid 19 (67.9%). Resistance to five or more antimicrobials was detected in 20 (71.5%) of the isolates. Multidrug resistance to more than 7 antimicrobials was detected in 5 (17.9%) of the isolates. Isolation of such multidrug resistant strains ofSalmonellafrom slaughtered cattle poses a major public health concern. These findings imply the need for a strict biosecurity and regulation of antimicrobial use across the country.