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Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis types of Campylobacter spp. in Danish turkeys before and after slaughter.

In this study, seven Danish turkey flocks were investigated at the farm, on arrival to the slaughterhouse, and during and after slaughter. Flocks were selected based on their Campylobacter spp. status at the farm and three Campylobacter negative and four Campylobacter positive flocks were included in the study. At the slaughterhouse, 70-75 samples were collected at different points from the shackling station to packaging of the final meat cuttings. Samples included cloacal swabs, neckskin, liver, heart, meat and environmental samples. Detection of Campylobacter was carried out by conventional culture and by the EiaFoss system (Foss Electric, Hilleroed, Denmark) for detecting Campylobacter spp. in food, using Preston Broth as enrichment medium. The two methods were compared and sensitivities and specificities were calculated using the conventional culture as gold standard. The three negative flocks were consistently negative from the farm and all through processing. Among the samples from the positive flocks, the frequency of positive samples obtained at the slaughterhouse varied. The frequency of positive samples obtained from the four positive flocks varied and was found to be 4%, 49%, 87% and 96%, respectively. In 31 out of 424 samples, discrepancies were observed between results obtained by the EiaFoss system and the conventional culture technique. The sensitivity for the EiaFoss system was calculated to be 0.94 for meat and neckskin samples. A total of 161 strains were genotyped by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) in order to investigate possible changes in carriage of Campylobacter spp. strains during processing. In three flocks, only one PFGE type was encountered in samples collected at the farm level and, in one flock, two different types were observed. In two flocks, the strain from the farm was also isolated in samples collected at the slaughterhouse. Changes in carriage were observed in two flocks during processing, in particular post chilling.

Abattoirs↗

Swine trichinosis in New England slaughterhouses.

Diaphragms of 5,315 slaughter hogs from the New England states were examined for Trichinella spiralis infection between June 22 and Dec 22, 1983. Thirty-nine hogs (0.73%) were infected. The infections were light, none exceeding 30 larvae/g of tissue, with an arithmetic mean of 4.7 larvae/g. Infected hogs originated from 5 of 6 New England states. The widespread occurrence of porcine trichinosis in New England indicates that the small or part-time hog farming operations frequently found in this region may be especially vulnerable to the introduction and maintenance of the parasite.

Abattoirs↗

Salmonella in slaughter pigs: the effect of logistic slaughter procedures of pigs on the prevalence of Salmonella in pork.

A substantial part of the finishing pigs in the Netherlands is infected with Salmonella. Infection of pigs with Salmonella can occur already on the farm. Pigs can also get infected or contaminated during transport, lairage or slaughter. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of separating pigs from Salmonella-infected farms from pigs from Salmonella-free farms during transport, lairage and slaughter on the prevalence of Salmonella on pork after slaughter. Two experiments were carried out. In the first experiment, farms were selected to participate, based on serology of the pigs (Dutch Salmonella ELISA). The pigs were slaughtered at the beginning of the day: firstly, sero-negative herds, secondly, sero-positive herds and thirdly, again sero-negative herds. The latter were slaughtered to investigate the effect of a contaminated slaughterline due to a previously slaughtered positive herd. In the second experiment, farms were selected to participate, based on both serology and bacteriology of the pigs on the farm. Two hundred pigs from Salmonella-free farms were slaughtered after 200 pigs from Salmonella-infected farms. Results showed that the prevalence of Salmonella in pork samples of sero-negative herds was lower than in samples of sero-positive herds. Results also showed that Salmonella contamination of carcasses after slaughter was partially caused by Salmonella-infected herds that were slaughtered before, and partially by residential flora of the slaughterhouse. It is concluded that separate slaughter of sero-negative pig herds can be useful to decrease the prevalence of Salmonella-contaminated pork after slaughter. To avoid cross-contamination by residential flora from trucks, lairage and slaughterline, cleaning and disinfection have to be improved.

Abattoirs↗

Prevalence of Campylobacter jejuni and Salmonella during pig slaughtering.

It was found that 79% of healthy pigs, slaughtered in three different slaughterhouses in the Netherlands, were intestinal carriers of Campylobacter jejuni (mean number 4000 cfu per g), and 21% of the same pigs had Salmonella in the intestinal tract (mean number 10 cfu per g). Immediately after slaughter, Campylobacter was swabbed from 9% of the carcasses and Salmonella from 13%. It is concluded from these data that most of the contamination on carcasses does not originate directly from the intestinal tracts of the animals but rather from surfaces, equipment, and utensils in the slaughter hall. It was demonstrated that Salmonella could survive in the slaughter hall, whereas Campylobacter died off, probably due to its vulnerability to drying conditions and its inability to grow at temperatures below 30 degrees C. Campylobacter was not isolated from the carcasses after cooling. It had been shown earlier that this again was caused by dry conditions, brought about by the use of forced ventilation in the cooling rooms. In an additional investigation, Campylobacter was not isolated from 248 samples of minced pork (10 g each), whereas Salmonella was found in 13% of these samples.

Abattoirs↗

Bacteriological contamination in wastewaters from slaughterhouses.

Eighty samples of wastewater from 4 slaugherhouses (A and B pig and cattle, C pig and D cattle slaughterhouse), were examined to determine the bacteriological contamination. At the same time, attention was given to the influence of the types of slaughterhouses and the presence of a guttery on the composition of the bacterial flora in the wastewater. The total viable bacteria at 37 degrees C and 22 degrees C varied from 10(6) to 10(8)/ml. The coliforms and E. coli in the samples of the same slaughterhouse varied widely. The slaughtering of pigs did increase the contamination of wastewater with Salmonella compared with that of the slaughtering of cattle. The cleaning and scraping of the gut increased considerably the number of coliforms, E. coli and Salmonellae. All samples examined were contaminated with Coagulase and/or DNase positive staphylococci of which the maximum number was 1.5 x 1.0(4)/ml. Strains coming from slaughterhouse C belonged to the species Staph, aureus and Staph. hyicus subsp. hyicus and those of slaughterhouse D only to the species Staph. hyicus subsp. hyicus.

Abattoirs↗

Ochratoxin A residues in tissues of slaughter pigs with nephropathy.

Kidneys showing nephropathy changes were collected from slaughtered pigs at seven slaughterhouses in various districts of Denmark. Levels of ochratoxin A residues greater than 2 microgram/kg were detected in 21 out of 60 kidneys (35%). Ochratoxin A residues in liver, muscular and adipose tissues were calculated on the basis of the kidney concentration. Although the 21 kidneys containing ochratoxin A were condemned, the carcasses passed the meat inspection. Routinely only a small fraction of pigs exhibits nephropathy changes at slaughter, but the results of this study provide indirect evidence for a limited occurrence of ochratoxin A residues in commercial meat.

Animals↗

Molecular characterization of Escherichia coli O157 contamination routes in a cattle slaughterhouse.

In a cattle slaughterhouse, sampling was performed over a 1-week period to examine the prevalence and possible contamination routes of Escherichia coli O157. Each sampling day, swab samples were collected from the slaughterhouse environment before onset of slaughter, from the slaughterline, and from 20 successively slaughtered animals. Isolation of E. coli O157 consisted of a 6-hour enrichment followed by immunomagnetic separation and selective plating. From the 394 samples taken, 84 (21%) were positive for E. coli O157. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) of collected isolates produced 26 different profiles, from which 5 PFGE profiles carried two or more Stx genes. The combination of PFGE profiles and Stx types resulted in 32 different E. coli O157 types. E. coli O157 was found in the slaughterhouse environment before the onset of slaughter. The first two sampling days, feces and carcasses were found negative. On the third sampling day, five fecal samples and four carcasses from animals negative in the feces were positive. Hide of the anal region and the shoulder were found positive every sampling day. The shoulder hide was more than twice as contaminated as the anal region hide. Typing of different isolates from a sample showed that frequently different E. coli O157 types were presented. On sampling days 1 and 2, types present in the environment and on the hides of the slaughtered animals differed. On the third sampling day, two dominant types were found in the environment (even before the onset of slaughter), as well as on the hides, feces, and carcasses. Although examined animals originated from different farms, one (two on day 3) dominant E. coli O157 type was present on their hides each sampling day. These data indicated that (i) the progress of contamination can differ from day to day within a slaughterhouse and (ii) contact between animals after the departure from the farm can have a large effect on the spread of E. coli O157 hide contamination.

Abattoirs↗

Verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157:H7 in the Swedish pig population.

Verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157:H7 (VTEC O157:H7) was detected in two of 2446 individual faecal samples collected from pigs slaughtered at five Swedish slaughterhouses, indicating a prevalence of 0.08 per cent, with a 95 per cent confidence interval from 0 to 0.16 per cent Four Swedish VTEC O157:H7-positive farms which kept ruminants and pigs were studied by repeated faecal sampling; VTEC O157:H7 was isolated from the ruminants and pigs on all the farms and the same strains were present in the pigs and the ruminants. On one of the farms, the organism persisted in the pig population for 11 months. On all four farms, management practices which might have influenced the isolation rate in pigs were identified. A group of young VTEC O157:H7-positive pigs was moved from one of the VTEC O157:H7-positive farms to a fattening herd where there were no ruminants. The number of VTEC O157:H7-positive faecal samples decreased gradually and after nine weeks the pigs were all negative; at slaughter none of the pigs was VTEC O157:H7-positive.

Abattoirs↗

Serological survey of Toxoplasma gondii infection among slaughtered pigs in northwestern Taiwan.

A serological survey of Toxoplasma gondii infection among slaughtered pigs in the largest slaughterhouse located in Taoyuan County of northwestern Taiwan was conducted using the latex agglutination (LA) test during 1998. The overall seroprevalence of T. gondii infection was 28.8% (32/111) with LA titers of 1:32 (6, 18.8%), 1:64 (10, 31.2%), 1:128 (9, 28.1%), 1:256 (6, 18.8%), and 1:512 (1, 3.1%). No significant difference (P > 0.05) in seroprevalence between male (28.6%, 20/70) and female (29.7%, 12/41) slaughtered pigs was observed. A decreasing trend in the seroprevalence among slaughtered pigs examined in the same slaughterhouse was observed because of a lower seroprevalence (P < 0.05) than that (44.4%, 128/288) previously reported about 10 yr ago using the LA test. Nevertheless, it is important to avoid eating raw or undercooked pork in order to prevent the acquisition of T. gondii infection among people in Taiwan.

Abattoirs↗

A study of the prevalence and economic significance of diseases and defects of slaughtered farmed deer.

A survey was undertaken in a deer slaughterhouse to record the diseases, defects, and productivity-related information that were detectable at postmortem meat inspection. A total of 4762 farmed deer were surveyed in 1988-89 over the period of highest throughput (October-January). Comparative data were drawn from a further two deer slaughterhouses and from national disease and defect statistics for slaughtered cattle. Farmed deer had a very different disease and defect status compared to cattle. Wounds and bruises dominated the disease and defect statistics, and resulted in an average loss of 26.9% in carcass value over all cases. In addition, most chronic pathological lesions were trauma-related. Tuberculosis was the only infectious disease of importance, and the prevalence of confirmed cases (0.38%) o was significantly higher than that in slaughtered cattle in New Zealand (0.07%). Average loss in carcass value for reactors and confirmed tuberculous cases was 74.7%.

Journal Article↗

A survey of seasonal changes in nematode faecal egg count levels of sheep and goats in Senegal.

A survey of the gastro-intestinal nematodes in domestic sheep and goats of the Sahelian zone of Senegal was undertaken. Their prevalence and the egg production were estimated by faecal egg count in 2234 sheep and 577 goats slaughtered at the Dakar slaughterhouse during a 12 month period. The highest prevalence (%) and highest mean egg counts (EPG) were recorded at the end of the wet season. Amongst the species of nematodes encountered there are two of potential importance: Haemonchus contortus and Oseophagostomum columbianum. It is suggested that the most effective control can be achieved by a critical treatment at the end of dry season (May--June) when the EPG starts to increase, and when hypobiosis is supposed to be terminating. This would insure the greatest proportion of the existing worm population to be exposed to the anthelmintic.

Animals↗

Familial occurrence of pig intersexes (38,XX; SRY-negative) on a commercial fattening farm.

Occurrence of sex-reversal (38,XX; SRY-negative) cases in the progeny of a single boar was observed. Altogether 11 intersexes, originating from nine litters, given by nine sows were found. The breeder classified the sex-reversal individuals as females with enlarged clitoris. In addition, it was noticed that the anus was joined with the vulva. Moreover, in the scrotum-like structure one or two gonads were present. Cytogenetic evaluation was carried out for the sire, five dams and seven intersexes. The study revealed the normal male karyotype (38,XY) in the sire and the normal female karyotype (38,XX) in the dams and the intersexes. Molecular detection of the presence of the SRY gene was carried out for the sire, five dams, 10 intersexes and 28 phenotypically normal siblings. The SRY gene was present in the genotype of the sire and the male siblings. Three intersexes were subjected to detailed anatomical and histological examinations, after slaughter in a local slaughterhouse. Gonads were classified as testes with well-developed epididymis, however, without spermatogenetic activity. The presence of a properly developed uterus and ducti deferens was observed, but oviducts were not found. The collected data indicate that the sex-reversal status was caused by an unknown autosome, recessive mutation. Genetic background of this type of intersexuality is discussed in this study.

Animals↗

Preparation of equine isolated hepatocytes.

In this study a detailed description of the equine hepatocyte isolation procedure is presented. Livers were obtained from horses slaughtered at the local slaughterhouse. For blood removal and liver preservation the following steps are suggested: perfusion with the oxygenated HBSS (0-2 degrees C, with continuous flow of 500-800 ml/min for 3-6 min), protection from ischemia injury by flushing with ice-cold University of Wisconsin Solution (UW, flow rate of 500-800 ml/min), and finally immersion of the liver lobe in UW solution (2 degrees C) during its transport to the laboratory. For equine isolated hepatocyte preparation a "three-step" perfusion procedure was elaborated: rewarming, chelating and collagenase perfusion. We found optimal cell yield and viability under the following conditions: rewarming with UW (38 degrees C) for 8-14 min, chelating with calcium free Hanks' Balanced Salt Solution (HBSS, 38 degrees C) supplemented with 1 mM ethylene glycol-bis[beta-aminoethyl esther]-N,N,N'N'-tetracetic acid at the flow rate of 450 ml/min for 6 min and enzymatic digestion with HBSS supplemented with 0.1% collagenase at 38 degrees C and 450 ml/min flow rate for 8-27 min. These conditions consistently generated cell harvests of 21 x 10(6)+/-4.86 cells/g of perfused liver tissue with viability of 82.7%+/-10.2.

Animals↗

Identification of acid fast bacteria from caseous lesions in cattle in Sudan.

One-hundred-and-twenty caseous lesions collected from slaughtered cattle at selected slaughterhouses in Sudan were processed for the detection of acid-fast bacteria (AFB). Sixty-four of the 120 samples showed AFB on microscopic examination after staining with the Ziehl-Neelsen method. Accordingly, it was estimated that 64 (53.3%) of the 120 caseous (purulent) lesions among the samples were due to AFB whereas 56 (46.7%) were due to other causes. Growth on Lowenstein-Jensen slants was obtained in 54 of the 120 samples. The isolated AFB were tentatively identified using microscopic and cultural characteristics. Confirmation of the phenotypic clusters was achieved by analysing the mycolic acids contents and PCR-amplification of the IS6110 insertion sequences. The above two methods have allowed the identification of Mycobacterium bovis and M. farcinogenes, the major AFB isolated from cattle in Sudan. The remaining AFB, which were negative for the above two tests, were further identified by sequencing the 16S rRNA gene. The above strategy thus allowed the identification of the isolated strains as follows: 25 (46%) M. bovis; 21 (39.9%) M. farcinogenes; 4 (7.4%) M. tuberculosis; 1 (1.9%) M. avium; 1 (1.9%) Nocardia sp., 2 (3.7%) unidentified AFB. The isolation of M. farcinogenes and M. tuberculosis, from pulmonary lymph nodes represented important findings.

Animals↗