Molecular Characterization of <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i> in the Food Chain of the Republic of Kosovo from 2016 to 2022
Besart Jashari,
Karine Capitaine,
Bledar Bisha,
Beatrix Stessl,
Katerina Blagoevska,
Armend Cana,
Dean Jankuloski,
Benjamin Félix
Affiliations
Besart Jashari
Food Microbiology, Food and Veterinary Laboratory, Food and Veterinary Agency of Kosovo, Lidhja e Pejës 241, 10000 Pristina, Kosovo
Karine Capitaine
Laboratory for Food Safety, Salmonella and Listeria Unit, ANSES, European Union Reference Laboratory for <i>L. monocytogenes</i>, University of Paris-Est, 94700 Maisons-Alfort, France
Bledar Bisha
Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071, USA
Beatrix Stessl
Unit of Food Microbiology, Centre for Food Science and Public Veterinary Health, Clinical Department for Farm Animals and Food Systems Safety, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Veterinärplatz 1, A-2110 Vienna, Austria
Katerina Blagoevska
Food Institute, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine—Skopje, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Lazar Pop-Trajkov 5–7, 1000 Skopje, North Macedonia
Armend Cana
Microbiology Laboratory, University for Business and Technology—Higher Education Institution, Kalabria, 10000 Pristina, Kosovo
Dean Jankuloski
Food Institute, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine—Skopje, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Lazar Pop-Trajkov 5–7, 1000 Skopje, North Macedonia
Benjamin Félix
Laboratory for Food Safety, Salmonella and Listeria Unit, ANSES, European Union Reference Laboratory for <i>L. monocytogenes</i>, University of Paris-Est, 94700 Maisons-Alfort, France
The present study describes the genetic characterization of L. monocytogenes strains found in the Republic of Kosovo’s food chain. From 2016 to 2022, 995 samples were collected. Overall, 648 samples were from ready-to-eat (RTE) food products, 281 from food products consumed cooked (FPCC), 60 from raw materials, and 6 from environmental samples. Overall, 11.76% (117 out of 995) of the samples were contaminated by L. monocytogenes, comprising 6.33% (41 out of 648) from RTE products, 14.95% (42 out of 281) from FPCC, 55.00% (33 out of 60) from raw materials, and 16.66% (1 out of 6) from environmental samples. All isolates were subjected to molecular serotyping and clonal complex (CC) identification by using real-time PCR, as well as multilocus sequence typing. All isolates were grouped into four molecular serotypes, IIa (34.19%), IIb (3.48%), IIc (32.48%), and IVb (29.91%), as well as Lineage I (33.33%) and Lineage II (66.66%). In total, 14 CCs were identified from 41 RTE isolates; however, CC29 (7), CC2 (6), and CC6 (6) were the most dominant. By contrast, CC9 was by far the most represented CC in both FPCC (21) and RM (14). Moreover, 30 isolates expressed CC1, CC2, CC4, or CC6, which are particularly associated with severe human infections.
