Isolation, Identification and Antibiogram of Salmonella from Cloacal Swabs of Free Range Poultry in Nsukka, Nigeria

Abstract

Aim: Poultry is a common source of antibiotics resistant Salmonella in humans. This study aimed to isolate and identify Salmonella in free range chicken and turkey in Nsukka, Nigeria and to determine the antibiotic resistance profile of the isolates. Study Design, Area and Duration of Study: The study followed an experimental design. It was carried out in Nsukka metropolis of Enugu state, Nigeria. Samples were collected from 3 communities and 1 market from March to July 2016. A total of 150 cloacal samples comprising of 100 samples from chicken and 50 samples from turkey were used. Methods: Isolation was carried out according to the International Organization of Standardization (ISO) and World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) recommendations using pre-enrichment in buffered peptone water, enrichment in Tetrathionate broth and primary isolation on Xylose Lysine Deoxycholate (XLD) agar. Identification was carried out according to the recommendations of ISO and OIE using comprehensive biochemical and cultural identification procedure. Antibiotic sensitivity testing was by disc diffusion method, while the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) were determined using the broth dilution technique, according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standard Institute (CLSI) guidelines. Results: A total of 3 Salmonella spp. were isolated from the 150 samples, giving a prevalence of 2%. The positive samples comprised of 2 (2%) from chicken and 1 (2%) from turkey. All the isolates were 100% susceptible to 3 of the antibiotics tested, but showed differing degrees of resistance to the rest antibiotics. The MIC of 3 antibiotics tested on the isolates ranged from 1 µg/ml to 16 µg/ml, while the MBC ranged from 0.25 µg/ml to 64 µg/ml. Conclusion: Free range poultry species including chicken and turkey could be important in the transmission and spread of antibiotic resistant Salmonella in the study area.