Analysis of Microbiological Screen Test Data for Antimicrobial Residues in Food Animals

Abstract

This study analyzes the National Residue Program (NRP) of the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), data for the years 1983-1998 to determine the effectiveness of all three microbiological screen tests that were developed and used by the FSIS to control antimicrobial residues in food animals. The Swab Test On Premises (STOP) was the first screen test introduced in slaughterhouses, followed by the Calf Antibiotic Sulfonamide Test (CAST) and the Fast Antimicrobial Screen Test (FAST). The data for STOP indicates that during 1983-1998, the rate of food animal carcasses with violative levels of antimicrobial residues reduced from 2.33% to 0.45% under the monitoring plan and under the surveillance plan, the rate reduced from 55.1% to 0.56%. Similarly, the data for CAST indicates that the rate of calf carcasses with violative levels of antimicrobial residue also declined significantly during those years. Because of its higher sensitivity and shorter analytical time, the use of FAST started in 1995. By 1999, it had practically replaced the use of STOP and CAST in bovine species. The use of only one test such as FAST instead of different tests has removed confusion for testing different species of food animals and thereby has enhanced the efficiency of the NRP.

Simultaneous determination of fluoroquinolones and tetracyclines in chicken muscle using HPLC with fluorescence detection

“…Ultimately, methods which allow for the simultaneous determination of more than one class of drug residues will be needed as well. To date, this approach has primarily been demonstrated with microbial or immunochemical screening assays [11,12], or with mass spectrometry [13,14]. Simple screening assays generally do not allow for differentiation between members of a class due to cross reactivity, and mass spectrometry involves the use of complex, expensive instrumentation.…”

Development and validation of a streamlined method designed to detect residues of 62 veterinary drugs in bovine kidney using ultra‐high performance liquid chromatography – tandem mass spectrometry

“…To check for antibiotic residues in suspect carcasses, the inspectors assay the kidney (typical target tissue for antimicrobial drugs) using simple microbial inhibition screening tests, such as the fast antibiotic screening test (FAST) or kidney inhibition swab (KIS™) kit. [7,8] In 2009, %137,000 of 33.7 million cattle slaughtered (0.41%) were screened for antibiotic residues in inspectorgenerated sampling. [6] When the 3-6 h test of the kidney swab yields a positive result (3-5% of tested samples), the carcass is detained, and kidney, liver, and muscle samples are sent by overnight delivery to the FSIS Midwestern Laboratory.…”

“…On average since 1996, the violation rate for tested veterinary drug residues in inspector-generated cattle has been %0.9% with up to 25% of those animals being violative for multiple residues. [6] Considering the adage, 'You can only find what you're looking for', there are several problems with the 7-plate bioassay screen with respect to the true need of the analysis: (1) it only works for microbial growth inhibiting residues (certain antibiotics within and among classes); (2) it is not sensitive enough for sulfonamides and fluoroquinolones in relation to their tolerances, but it is much too sensitive for tetracyclines and certain aminoglycosides with high tolerances; (3) it does not distinguish one drug from another in the same class; (4) the results can be difficult to interpret, especially when multiple drugs are present even from more than one class; (5) it is not quantitative by current standards; (6) it is prone to unknown microbial inhibition responses; and (7) it takes a team of personnel to set up the assay and >16 h to obtain the results.…”

Veterinary drugs residue monitoring in Italian poultry: Current strategies and possible developments

“…Contrary to what occurs in other countries, like for instance the USA where contamination rates due to sulfonamides amounted in some years to over 4% (Dey et al, 2003), sulfa drugs appear to be of scarce importance as contaminating residues in Italy (less than 1% violation, with a 95% confidence). This trend has been constant during the past few years (see Table 3 and Fig.…”

“…These substances have been selected for residue investigations also due to other reasons, as, for instance, the high frequency of violations reported worldwide, especially for sulfonamides, which record the highest violation rate in the USA (Dey, Thaler, & Gwozdz, 2003); public health considerations were also taken into account (Bates, Joerdens, & Griffiths, 1994;Boisseau, 1993;Heitzman, 1993). Some of the drugs routinely employed in poultry farms, such as quinolones, are increasingly involved in antibiotic resistance phenomena, characterizing both animal and human isolates; this is particularly the case of Campylobacter spp.…”