Prevalence, Antimicrobial Resistance and Risk Factors of Zoonotic Foodborne Pathogens Isolated from Camel Meat

Abstract

Approximately 75% of newly emerging infectious human illnesses are zoonotic (originating mainly from animals). All camel-raising countries, where camel meat is of popular consumption, are susceptible to camel zoonotic illnesses. The goal of the current study was to evaluate the microbiological safety and the associated risk factors of increasing microbial prevalence with the antibiogram status of the examined camel meat at the Elbasatien abattoir, which is the oldest and biggest abattoir in Cairo governorate of Egypt. Three zoonotic foodborne pathogens, including Salmonella spp., Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli, were successfully isolated with prevalence rates of 8% (8/100), 24% (24/100), and 14% (14/100) in the camel meat samples under examination. The prevalence of the isolated foodborne pathogens in camel meat was found to be higher among the age group of ˃5 years, among females, among samples collected during warm conditions, and ultimately among camels reared with other animal species in the herd, based on an analysis of the demographic data of the examined slaughtered camels as potential risk factors of acquiring pathogens. Additionally, using antimicrobial susceptibility testing on the three foodborne pathogens isolated revealed that, although the obtained positive S. aureus showed resistance against Amoxicillin-clavulanic, Ampicillin, and Ceptaxime, all isolated positive Salmonella and E. coli were resistant against all ten antibiotic discs used in the study.The discovered antibiogram data shed insight on the risk of foodborne pathogen transmission to humans and the subsequent spread of antibiotic resistance amongst consumers of camel meat.