Foodborne diseases represent a major risk to public health worldwide. Pathogenic bacteria can live in the form of biofilm within the food industry, providing a permanent source of contamination. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the types of adhesion surfaces on Salmonella biofilm formation at eight different times, and analyze the action time of a bacteriophage pool on established biofilms. Most of the samples used were classified as weak biofilm producers, with serovars Enteritidis and Heidelberg showing the highest frequency of biofilm formation. Glass and stainless steel surfaces significantly favored biofilm formation at 60 and 36 h of incubation respectively, but the polyvinyl chloride surface did not favor biofilm production, suggesting that the type of material may interfere with production. The bacteriophage pool action period focused on 3 h, but treatment of 9 h on glass surface biofilms was superior to other treatments because it affected the largest number of samples. These results suggests that some surface types and Salmonella serotypes may promote biofilm formation and indicate bacteriophages as an alternative to control biofilms. But further studies are required to prove the effectiveness and safety of bacteriophage therapy as an alternative in the antimicrobial control in the processing plants.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the occurrence of potentially zoonotic intestinal protozoan infections in exotic and wildlife Brazilian birds. Fecal samples from 207 birds of 45 species were examined. Infections by Balantidium sp., Entamoeba sp., and Blastocystis sp. were observed in 17 individuals (8.2%) of Gnorimopsar chopi, Oryzoborus angolensis, Sporophila caerulescens, Ramphastos toco, Aratinga leucophtalmus, and Pavo cristatus.

Salmonella food poisoning is a public health problem. Feed withdrawal from broiler chickens before slaughter can favor the multiplication of Salmonella in the cecum and crop of contaminated animals and subsequently lead to contamination of carcasses in the processing plant. In the present study, a cocktail of lytic bacteriophages isolated from sewage water was orally administered to 45-d-old broiler chickens 1 h after they received an oral dose of 10(7) cfu/mL Salmonella enterica subspecies enterica serotype Enteritidis. Immediately after phage administration and 30 min, 1, 3, 6, and 12 h thereafter, groups of chicken were killed. Ceca and crops were analyzed for the presence of Salmonella. At 3 h posttreatment, there were 10(3) cfu/g and 10(1) cfu/g of cecal and crop suspension, respectively. At 6 h after treatment, the number of Salmonella was 10(3) cfu/g in the cecal suspension, but below the detection limit in the crops. Our results suggest that bacteriophage therapy may be able to reduce the contamination of chicken carcasses by reducing the preslaughter load of Salmonella in the birds.

Bacterial cultures of cloaca swabs from 86 captivity kept psittacidaes revealed 17 Escherichia coli bearing birds sharing strains which, on the basis of enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus (ERIC) PCR analysis, proved to be genetically similar. Further, triplex PCR specific for the genetic markers chuA, yjaA, and TSPE4.C2 was used to assign the strains to the E. coli reference collection (EcoR) B2 group. One strain of each, from the enteropathogenic (EPEC), enteroaggregative (EAEC) and Shiga toxin (STEC) E. coli pathovars were found among these isolates.

Raoultella ornithinolytica is a gram-negative aerobic bacterium belonging to Enterobacteriaceae family, an emerging pathogen that causes several pathogenic conditions in man, with little veterinary importance; however, its identification is underestimated by conventional laboratory techniques. The present study reports the identification of R. ornithinolytica in Tinamus solitaries, during a routine sanitary evaluation of aerobic enterobacteria in cloacal microbiota of birds belonging to the Güira Oga Center, Puerto Iguazu, Argentina. The sample was preliminary classified as Klebsiella spp.; however, after the use of the MALDI-TOF MS technique it was identified as R. ornithinolytica. The sample was submitted to an antimicrobial susceptibility test, where it showed a similar pattern profile as reported in the literature, with resistance to ampicillin and other β-lactam antibiotics. It is possible that Raoultella spp are more common in birds as it is reported. Therefore, review studies on bacteria collections of avian origin, as well as cases with confirmation of Klebsiella, should be deeply evaluated in laboratorial routine, mainly due to the pathogenic potential of R. ornithinolytica for Poultry, as well as for public health.

Avian salmonellosis is a disease caused by bacteria of the genus Salmonella that can cause three distinct diseases in birds: pullorum diseases, fowl typhoid, and paratyphoid infection. Various wildlife species are susceptible to infections by Salmonella, regardless of whether they live in captivity or freely in the wild. The present study verified the presence of Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis in three captive specimens of Amazona aestiva. The study involved a total of 103 birds undergoing rehabilitation to prepare for living in the wild, after having been captured from animal traffickers and delivered to the Centrofauna Project of the Floravida Institute in Sao Paulo, Brazil. This is the first report of Salmonella Enteritidis isolation in A. aestiva that originated from capture associated with animal trafficking; Salmonella was detected during the study by the serologic method of rapid serum agglutination on a plate with bacterial isolate. The antimicrobial profile exam of the isolated samples demonstrated sensitivity to ampicillin, cefaclor, ciprofloxacin, and cloranfenicol. The three samples also presented resistance to more than four antibiotics. The presence of the genes invA and spvC was verified by PCR technique and was associated with virulence and absence of class 1 integron, a gene related to antimicrobial resistance. The commercial antigen for pullorum disease was shown to be a useful tool for rapid detection in the screening of Salmonella of serogroup D1 in Psittaciformes. New studies on Salmonella carriage in birds involved in trafficking must be performed to better understand their participation in the epidemiologic cycle of salmonellosis in humans and other animals.

It has been reported that the phage therapy is effective in controlling the number of colony-forming unit (CFU) of Salmonella spp. in chicken gut. This paper describes the protective effect of phage and Lactobacilli administration on Salmonella infection in 1-day-old chicks. We administered the bacteriophage P22 in a single dose and a probiotic mixture of four species of bacteriocin-producing Lactobacillus once a day for one week. Samples were analyzed every 48 hours, and intestinal eradication of S. Typhimurium was confirmed after treatments. We observed an increase in the size of duodenal villi and cecal crypts, as well as an increase in body weight in groups that received daily doses of Lactobacilli. This study confirms the efficiency of bacteriophage therapy in controlling salmonellosis in chicks and the beneficial effect of Lactobacilli mixtures in the weight gain of the birds.

A Escherichia coli é uma bactéria pertencente à família Enterobacteriacea que faz parte da microbiota entérica de mamíferos e de muitas espécies de aves. A Salmonella spp. também pertence à mesma família, sendo responsável por surtos de infecção alimentar em humanos e frequentemente isoladas de aves domésticas e aves silvestres. O presente estudo analisou a frequência de ambas as bactérias em Psittaciformes em processo de reabilitação para a vida livre. De 89 aves analisadas 19% estavam infectadas com E. coli e 1,12% com Salmonella spp. Realizou-se uma análise do perfil de resistência a antibióticos onde se observou a eficiência de estreptomicina, tetraciclina, trimetoprim e gentamicina sobre as amostras. As amostras de E. coli foram submetidas ao teste de Vermelho-Congo e ao teste Atividade Hemolítica, onde se observaram 70,6% de amostras positivas para o primeiro e 53% para o segundo teste.