Occurrence of Livestock-Associated Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Turkey and Broiler Barns and Contamination of Air and Soil Surfaces in Their Vicinity

Abstract

The emission of microorganisms, especially resistant bacteria such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), from poultry farms is of public interest, and its occurrence and relevance are controversially discussed. So far, there are limited data on this issue. In this study, we investigated the occurrence of livestock-associated (LA)-MRSA inside and outside previously tested MRSA-positive poultry barns in Germany. In total, five turkey and two broiler fattening farms were investigated four and three times, respectively. In a longitudinal study during one fattening period, samples were collected from animals, the animals' environment inside the barn, including the air, and the barns' surroundings, such as ambient air and boot swabs of ground surfaces at different distances from the barn. Moreover, a cross-sectional study was carried out once inside the barns on five turkey and four broiler farms during the last third of the fatting period. In the cross-sectional study, LA-MRSA was detected in the air of most barns (7 of 9, 77.8%), as well as in many samples originating from animals, with detections levels of 50 to 54% in broiler and 62 to 77% in turkey farms. In the longitudinal study, LA-MRSA was found in the ambient air outside two turkey barns and on the ground surface on the downwind side of many (44.4%) turkey and broiler farms. The same spa types of isolates were observed inside and outside the barns. Transmission of MRSA within poultry farms, as well as emission via the airborne route, seems to be possible.

Characterization of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from Healthy Turkeys and Broilers Using DNA Microarrays

“…The spa t1403 associated with 398-MRSA-V has been previously reported for isolates from humans (Köck et al, 2013) and broiler flocks (Friese et al, 2013). CC5-MRSA-III with spa t002 was detected before in diseased turkeys (Monecke et al, 2013) and turkey meat (Feßler et al, 2011), but the spa type t002 is not indicative for this MRSA strain as it is abundant among CC5 isolates of any origin and SCC status.…”

Isolation and Detection of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococci in Healthy Broilers in Nsukka Southeast, Nigeria

“…Surveillance studies to detect the occurrence of LA-MRS in poultry are rather scanty. However, studies conducted in Belgium (Nemati et al, 2008;Nemeghaire et al, 2013;Persoons et al, 2009), The Netherland (Mulders et al, 2010) and Germany (Friese et al, 2013;Schaumburg et al, 2013) implicated poultry as potential reservoir of MRS.…”

Methods for quantifyingStaphylococcus aureusin indoor air

“…In addition, airborne spread of S. aureus has been demonstrated in hospitals (Gehanno et al, 2009;Hsiao et al, 2012;Mirzaii et al, 2012;Shiomori et al, 2001Shiomori et al, , 2002, residences (Davis et al, 2012;Gandara et al, 2006;Perez et al, 2011), and livestock-housing barns (Friese et al, , 2013Schulz et al, 2012;Zhong et al, 2009), highlighting the importance of S. aureus transmission via airborne routes (Friese et al, , 2013Shiomori et al, 2001Shiomori et al, , 2002. In addition, airborne spread of S. aureus has been demonstrated in hospitals (Gehanno et al, 2009;Hsiao et al, 2012;Mirzaii et al, 2012;Shiomori et al, 2001Shiomori et al, , 2002, residences (Davis et al, 2012;Gandara et al, 2006;Perez et al, 2011), and livestock-housing barns (Friese et al, , 2013Schulz et al, 2012;Zhong et al, 2009), highlighting the importance of S. aureus transmission via airborne routes (Friese et al, , 2013Shiomori et al, 2001Shiomori et al, , 2002.…”