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Aims: Genetic diversity and antimicrobial resistance of Campylobacter coli and Campylobacter jejuni were investigated along the broiler chicken production chain in central Italy., Methods and Results: Campylobacter sp. isolated from cloacal swabs in farms (n = 116) and from the neck skin of chilled and eviscerated carcasses at slaughter (n = 24) were identified as C. coli (n = 99) and C. jejuni (n = 41) by multiplex PCR. Characterization by single amplified fragment length polymorphism (s-AFLP) revealed a specific genotype of Campylobacter for each farm. Minimal inhibitory concentration showed high prevalence of fluoroquinolones (70%), tetracycline (70%) and erythromycin (30%) resistance among C. coli isolates. Campylobacter jejuni isolates showed lower prevalence of fluoroquinolone (39%) and tetracycline (10%) resistance, and all isolates were susceptible to erythromycin. The S-AFLP types of the C. coli and C. jejuni isolates were associated with their antimicrobial resistance profiles (P < 0·001)., Conclusions: The genetic diversity detected in Campylobacter isolates suggested that a specific genotype was harboured in each farm. A considerable number of C. coli isolates were resistant to erythromycin., Significance and Impact of the Study: Campylobacter coli was detected more frequently than C. jejuni in contrast to common findings for poultry. The high prevalence of 30% resistance to erythromycin in C. coli strains isolated from poultry is worrisome, as this is the first antibiotic of choice to treat human campylobacteriosis., (© 2017 The Society for Applied Microbiology.)

This paper reports the multilocus sequence typing (MLST) of 57 C. jejuni and C. coli isolates from humans and chickens in Italy and the identification of 17 new sequence types (STs). A high genetic diversity was detected among C. jejuni/C. coli and human/chicken isolates, with a predominance of clonal complexes CC21 and CC828. Although human STs were not the same as those found in chickens, 3 CCs overlapped between human and chicken isolates. Genotyping of Campylobacter strains by MLST should be encouraged in order to implement surveillance and con- trol of infection in humans and in animal reservoirs in Italy.

Poultry are recognized as a main reservoir of thermophilic campylobacters, but few studies have been carried out on commercial meat turkeys. This study was aimed at assessing the occurrence of thermophilic Campylobacter spp., their genetic diversity, and the trend of the infection during the whole production cycle of three turkey flocks from different farms in Northern Italy. Flocks were monitored from the time of housing 1-day-old poults to slaughter time by collecting samples (meconium and cloacal swabs) at weekly intervals up to the recovery of Campylobacter spp. and then twice a month. A conventional culture method and a multiplex PCR assay were used for Campylobacter detection and identification. A subset of isolates was genetically characterized by random amplified polymorphic DNA-PCR (RAPD-PCR) and flagellin gene A short variable region (flaA-SVR) sequencing. Although at different times, all flocks became colonized by Campylobacter jejuni or Campylobacter coli (or both) that persisted throughout the entire production cycle. Overall, nine RAPD types and 14 flaA-SVR types were detected with differences in their distribution among flocks and sampling times. Moreover, changes in the Campylobacter genotypes colonizing turkeys were observed over time within each flock. These findings suggest that Italian commercial turkeys might be widely colonized by different genotypes of C. jejuni and C. coli and also suggest that differences in the distribution and epidemiologic dynamics of these microorganisms might occur among flocks.

Aim: To estimate the prevalence of thermotolerant Campylobacter spp. in commercially reared partridges (Perdix perdix) in southern Italy., Methods and Results: Cloacal swabs of partridges (n = 240), equally distributed between male and female birds, from a game bird farm located in the Southern Italy were examined for the prevalence of thermotolerant Campylobacter spp. The samples were processed in order to detect thermotolerant Campylobacter spp. by culture methods. The positive samples were then confirmed by multiplex polymerase chain reaction. Thermotolerant Campylobacter spp. were isolated from 118 (49.2%) of the 240 cloacal swabs examined. As proved by PCR, 100% of the strains were identified as Campylobacter coli (118/118), and 15 (12.7%) out of the 118 positive samples were also positive for Campylobacter jejuni. In contrast, Campylobacter lari was not identified. Adult partridges showed a significantly higher prevalence (P < 0.05) than younger ones., Conclusion: These results reinforce the assumption that game birds may be considered as potential carriers of Campylobacter spp. for human being and other animal species., Significance and Impact of the Study: Although an earlier 1986 publication described the prevalence of Campylobacter coli in commercially reared partridges, this is the first report to confirm the species of Campylobacter using a PCR test.

Monitoring of "thermophilic" campylobacters in a sewage treatment plant in Bologna (Italy) has shown that incoming sewage contained a most probable number of 1630 campylobacters/100 ml. The secondary treatment in activated sludge tanks reduced 98.61% of campylobacters, 95.32% of fecal coliforms, 96.46% of fecal streptococci, 93.36% of salmonellas and 93.01% and 88.29% of BOD5 and COD respectively. Subsequent tertiary treatment with 3 ppm of chlorine dioxide for 15 min reduced 100% of campylobacters and salmonellas. Significant correlation coefficients were found in incoming sewage between campylobacters and salmonellas (p < 0.01) and between campylobacters and fecal coliforms (p < 0.02). Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli constituted 51.3% and 48.7% respectively of the 80 strains isolated. In incoming sewage 66% of the strains isolated were found to be Campylobacter jejuni whereas Campylobacter coli strains were prevalent in activated sludge effluent (69.7%). The greatest frequency of isolation and the higher counts were obtained during the Spring to Summer period with distinct peaks in May, June and July. This seasonability is probably due to the seasonal variation of campylobacter infections in man and animals.