Prevalence and Characterization of Salmonella Isolated from Feral Pigs Throughout Texas

Summary Feral pigs are one of the most abundant free‐roaming ungulates in the United States, yet their role in the ecology and transmission of foodborne pathogens is poorly understood. Our objectives were to estimate the prevalence of Salmonella shedding among feral pigs throughout Texas, to identif...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Zoonoses and public health 2016-09, Vol.63 (6), p.436-441
Main Authors: Cummings, K. J., Rodriguez-Rivera, L. D., Grigar, M. K., Rankin, S. C., Mesenbrink, B. T., Leland, B. R., Bodenchuk, M. J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aging
Animal populations
Animals
Epidemiology
Female
Food contamination & poisoning
Food safety
foodborne disease
Hogs
Male
Prevalence
public health
Risk factors
Salmonella
Salmonella - classification
Salmonella Infections, Animal - epidemiology
Salmonella Infections, Animal - microbiology
Salmonella spp
Seasons
Swine
Swine Diseases - epidemiology
Swine Diseases - microbiology
Texas - epidemiology
Ungulates
Zoonoses
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Summary Feral pigs are one of the most abundant free‐roaming ungulates in the United States, yet their role in the ecology and transmission of foodborne pathogens is poorly understood. Our objectives were to estimate the prevalence of Salmonella shedding among feral pigs throughout Texas, to identify risk factors for infection, and to characterize the isolates. Faecal samples were collected from feral pigs in Texas from June 2013 through May 2015. Standard bacteriologic culture methods were used to isolate Salmonella from samples, and isolates were characterized via serotyping and anti‐microbial susceptibility testing. The prevalence of faecal Salmonella shedding among sampled pigs was 43.9% (194/442), with positive pigs originating from 50 counties. Pigs sampled during fall and summer were significantly more likely to be shedding Salmonella than pigs sampled during winter. High serovar diversity was evident among the isolates, and many of the detected serovars are leading causes of human salmonellosis. The most common serovars were Montevideo (10.0%), Newport (9.1%), and Give (8.2%). Resistance to anti‐microbial agents was rare. The burgeoning feral pig population in the United States may represent an emerging threat to food safety.
ISSN:1863-1959
1863-2378
DOI:10.1111/zph.12244