Background: Understanding potential risks of multi-drug resistant (MDR) pathogens from the booming poultry sector is a crucial public health concern. Campylobacter spp. are among the most important zoonotic pathogens associated with MDR infections in poultry and human. This study systematically examined potential risks and associated socio-environmental factors of MDR Campylobacter spp. in poultry farms and live bird markets (LBMs) of Bangladesh. Methods: Microbial culture and PCR-based methods were applied to examine the occurrence and MDR patterns of Campylobacter spp. in potential sources (n = 224) at 7 hatcheries, 9 broiler farms and 4 LBMs in three sub-districts. Antimicrobial residues in broiler meat and liver samples (n = 50) were detected by advanced chromatographic techniques. A questionnaire based cross-sectional survey was conducted on socio-environmental factors. Results: Overall, 32% (71/ 224) samples were found contaminated with Campylobacter spp. In poultry farms, Campylobacter spp. was primarily found in cloacal swab (21/49, 43%), followed by drinking water (8/24, 33%), and meat (8/28, 29%) samples of broilers. Remarkably, at LBMs, Campylobacter spp. was detected in higher prevalence (p < 0.05) in broiler meat (14/26, 54%), which could be related (p < 0.01) to bacterial contamination of drinking water (11/21, 52%) and floor (9/21, 43%). Campylobacter isolates, one from each of 71 positive samples, were differentiated into Campylobacter jejuni (66%) and Campylobacter coli (34%). Alarmingly, 49 and 42% strains of C. jejuni and C. coli, respectively, were observed as MDR, i.e., resistant to three or more antimicrobials, including, tetracycline, amoxicillin, streptomycin, fluoroquinolones, and macrolides. Residual antimicrobials (oxytetracycline, ciprofloxacin and enrofloxacin) were detected in majority of broiler liver (79%) and meat (62%) samples, among which 33 and 19%, respectively, had concentration above acceptable limit. Inadequate personal and environmental hygiene, unscrupulously use of antimicrobials, improper waste disposal, and lack of health surveillance were distinguishable risk factors, with local diversity and compound influences on MDR pathogens.Conclusion: Potential contamination sources and anthropogenic factors associated with the alarming occurrence of MDR Campylobacter, noted in this study, would aid in developing interventions to minimize the increasing risks of poultry-associated MDR pathogens under 'One Health' banner that includes poultry, human and environment perspectives.

Background: Understanding potential risks of multi-drug resistant (MDR) pathogens from the booming poultry sector is a crucial public health concern. Campylobacter spp. are among the most important zoonotic pathogens associated with MDR infections in poultry and human. This study systematically examined potential risks and associated socio-environmental factors of MDR Campylobacter spp. in poultry farms and live bird markets (LBMs) of Bangladesh. Methods: Microbial culture and PCR-based methods were applied to examine the occurrence and MDR patterns of Campylobacter spp. in potential sources (n = 224) at 7 hatcheries, 9 broiler farms and 4 LBMs in three sub-districts. Antimicrobial residues in broiler meat and liver samples (n = 50) were detected by advanced chromatographic techniques. A questionnaire based cross-sectional survey was conducted on socio-environmental factors. Results: Overall, 32% (71/ 224) samples were found contaminated with Campylobacter spp. In poultry farms, Campylobacter spp. was primarily found in cloacal swab (21/49, 43%), followed by drinking water (8/24, 33%), and meat (8/28, 29%) samples of broilers. Remarkably, at LBMs, Campylobacter spp. was detected in higher prevalence (p <0.05) in broiler meat (14/26, 54%), which could be related (p <0.01) to bacterial contamination of drinking water (11/21, 52%) and floor (9/21, 43%). Campylobacter isolates, one from each of 71 positive samples, were differentiated into Campylobacter jejuni (66%) and Campylobacter coli (34%). Alarmingly, 49% and 42% strains of C. jejuni and C. coli, respectively, were observed as MDR, i.e., resistant to three or more antimicrobials, including, tetracycline, amoxicillin, streptomycin, fluoroquinolones, and macrolides. Residual antimicrobials (oxytetracycline, ciprofloxacin and enrofloxacin) were detected in majority of broiler liver (79%) and meat (62%) samples, among which 33% and 19%, respectively, had concentration above acceptable limit. Inadequate personal and environmental hygiene, unscrupulously use of antimicrobials, improper waste disposal, and lack of health surveillance were distinguishable risk factors, with local diversity and compound influences on MDR pathogens. Conclusion: Potential contamination sources and anthropogenic factors associated with the alarming occurrence of MDR Campylobacter, noted in this study, would aid in developing interventions to minimize the increasing risks of poultry-associated MDR pathogens under ‘One Health’ banner that includes poultry, human and environment perspectives.

Antimicrobial effect of the crude organic extract of Xylocarpus granatum stem barks was studied in the Department of Pharmacology, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh, during the period from October to December 2003. Disc diffusion method has been adopted in this study and petri dishes (120 mm in diameter) containing nutrient agar medium seeded with the test organism was used for antimicrobial screening. Test materials diffuse from the discs to the surrounding medium of the plate. The plates are then kept in an incubator (37º) for 18 hours to allow the growth of the microorganisms. The antibacterial activity of the test agent is determined by measuring the diameter of the zone of inhibition in term of millimeter. Antimicrobial screening showed that the crude ethanol extract and other partially extracted fraction of the barks of Xylocarpus granatum possess antimicrobial activity against most of the test organisms depending upon the nature of their active ingredients in the extract and capacity of diffusion into the agar medium. Among the test organisms, the extract showed significant antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus epidermis, Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella boydii, and Proteus spp. and moderate activity against Escherichia coli, Streptococcus pyogenes, and no activity against Shigella dysentery, Enterococci, Salmonella typhi.

Background: This study systematically examined potential risks and associated socio-environmental factors of MDR Campylobacter spp. in poultry farms and live bird markets (LBMs) of Bangladesh. Methods: Microbial culture and PCR-based methods were applied to examine the occurrence and MDR patterns of Campylobacter spp. at hatcheries (n = 33), broiler farms (n = 122) and LBMs (n = 69). Antimicrobial residues in broiler meat and liver samples (n = 50) were detected by advanced chromatographic techniques. A questionnaire based cross-sectional survey was conducted on socio-environmental factors. Results: In poultry farms, Campylobacter spp. was primarily found in cloacal swab (21/49, 43%), followed by drinking water (8/24, 33%), and meat (8/28, 29%) samples of broilers. Remarkably, in live bird markets, Campylobacter spp. was detected in higher prevalence in broiler meat (14/26, 54%), which could have an association with bacterial contamination in drinking water sources (11/21, 52%) and floor (9/21, 43%). Representative isolates (n = 71) were differentiated into two species: Campylobacter jejuni (66%) and Campylobacter coli (34%). Majority of C. jejuni (33/47, 70%) and C. coli (14/24, 58%) strains were observed to be MDR, predominantly showing resistance to amoxycilin, tetracycline and erythromycin, and additionally to ciprofloxacin, norfloxacin, streptomycin, and azithromycin. Residual antimicrobials, including oxytetracycline, ciprofloxacin and enrofloxacin, were detected in majority of broiler liver (79%) and meat (62%) samples. Alarmingly, 33% and 19% of the liver and meat samples, respectively, contained residual antimicrobial concentration above acceptable limit. Inadequate personal and environmental hygiene, unscrupulously use of antimicrobials, improper waste disposal, and lack of health surveillance and quarantine facilities of diseased birds were distinguishable anthropogenic risk factors, with local diversity and compound influences on MDR pathogens. Conclusion: The observed large-scale occurrence of MDR C. jejuni and C. coli and residual antimicrobials in poultry value chain reflects an alarming situation for public health in Bangladesh. Potential contamination sources of MDR Campylobacter and the combined influences of diverse socio-environmental risk factors, noted in this study, would aid in developing interventions to minimize the increasing risks of poultry-associated MDR pathogens under ‘One Health’ banner that includes poultry, human and environment perspectives.

The present study was conducted to evaluate the status of chromium concentration in broiler feeds with the risk assessment of chromium in broiler meat. Seven broiler farms were selected to collect the feed and meat samples of broiler. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS) was used to determine the chromium concentration in broiler feed and meat samples. The highest concentration of chromium in broiler meat samples was 1.31±0.20 µg/g and in feed samples was 1.71±0.24µg/g. In this study, the mean (± SE) concentration of chromium in feed samples from Gazipur Sadar, Gazipur; Sreepur, Gazipur and Tangail Sadar, Tangail were 1.71(± 0.24) µg/g,1.64(±0.61) µg/g and 1.64(±0.61) µg/g respectively. The mean (± SE) concentration of chromium in meat samples from Gazipur Sadar, Gazipur; Sreepur, Gazipur and Tangail Sadar, Tangail were 1.139 (±0.26) µg/g, 1.31 (±0.20) µg/g and 0.61 (±0.23) µg/g respectively. The concentrations of chromium in broiler edible tissues were much higher than permissible levels determined by FAO and WHO. Precocious steps must be taken to avoid use of such health hazardous concentrations of heavy metals in poultry feeds. Considering these findings, there is a critical need to set legal limits and surveillance system for detection of heavy metals in poultry industry of Bangladesh.