Occurrence of Yersinia enterocolitica in Poultry Products

Abstract

In a study on isolation of Yersinia enterocolitica from poultry products, usefulness of the following enrichment media was evaluated: phosphate-buffered saline solution with and without addition of 1% sorbitol plus 0.15% bile salts, modified Rappaport medium and selenite broth. Plating was performed on MacConkey agar directly from the incubated broths and after treatment of the enrichment broths with a potassium hydroxide solution. Seventy-three of 108 (68%) samples of poultry products contained Y. enterocolitica. Y. enterocolitica was isolated most frequently after enrichment in phosphate-buffered saline solution with sorbitol and bile salts. Nearly all Y. enterocolitica strains were found after KOH-treatment. Serotyping showed that the isolated strains mainly belonged to the category of the non-pathogenic, so called “environmental” strains.