Intensive Environmental Surveillance Plan for <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i> in Food Producing Plants and Retail Stores of Central Italy: Prevalence and Genetic Diversity
Gabriella Centorotola,
Fabrizia Guidi,
Guglielmo D’Aurizio,
Romolo Salini,
Marco Di Domenico,
Donatella Ottaviani,
Annalisa Petruzzelli,
Stefano Fisichella,
Anna Duranti,
Franco Tonucci,
Vicdalia Aniela Acciari,
Marina Torresi,
Francesco Pomilio,
Giuliana Blasi
Affiliations
Gabriella Centorotola
Laboratorio Nazionale di Riferimento Per <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i>, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise G. Caporale, via Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
Fabrizia Guidi
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Umbria e delle Marche “Togo Rosati”, via Gaetano Salvemini, 1, 06126 Perugia, Italy
Guglielmo D’Aurizio
ARS P.F. Prevenzione Veterinaria e Sicurezza Alimentare, Regione Marche, via Don Gioia, 8, 60122 Ancona, Italy
Romolo Salini
Centro Operativo Veterinario Per l’Epidemiologia, Programmazione, Informazione e Analisi del Rischio (COVEPI), National Reference Center for Veterinary Epidemiology, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise G. Caporale, via Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
Marco Di Domenico
Centro di Referenza Nazionale Per Sequenze Genomiche di Microrganismi Patogeni, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise G. Caporale, via Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
Donatella Ottaviani
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Umbria e delle Marche “Togo Rosati”, via Gaetano Salvemini, 1, 06126 Perugia, Italy
Annalisa Petruzzelli
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Umbria e delle Marche “Togo Rosati”, via Gaetano Salvemini, 1, 06126 Perugia, Italy
Stefano Fisichella
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Umbria e delle Marche “Togo Rosati”, via Gaetano Salvemini, 1, 06126 Perugia, Italy
Anna Duranti
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Umbria e delle Marche “Togo Rosati”, via Gaetano Salvemini, 1, 06126 Perugia, Italy
Franco Tonucci
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Umbria e delle Marche “Togo Rosati”, via Gaetano Salvemini, 1, 06126 Perugia, Italy
Vicdalia Aniela Acciari
Laboratorio Nazionale di Riferimento Per <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i>, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise G. Caporale, via Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
Marina Torresi
Laboratorio Nazionale di Riferimento Per <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i>, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise G. Caporale, via Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
Francesco Pomilio
Laboratorio Nazionale di Riferimento Per <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i>, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise G. Caporale, via Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
Giuliana Blasi
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Umbria e delle Marche “Togo Rosati”, via Gaetano Salvemini, 1, 06126 Perugia, Italy
Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) can persist in food processing environments (FPEs), surviving environmental stresses and disinfectants. We described an intensive environmental monitoring plan performed in Central Italy and involving food producing plants (FPPs) and retail grocery stores (RSs). The aim of the study was to provide a snapshot of the Lm circulation in different FPEs during a severe listeriosis outbreak, using whole genome sequencing (WGS) to investigate the genetic diversity of the Lm isolated, evaluating their virulence and stress resistance profiles. A total of 1217 samples were collected in 86 FPEs with 12.0% of positive surfaces at FPPs level and 7.5% at RSs level; 133 Lm isolates were typed by multilocus sequencing typing (MLST) and core genome MLST (cgMLST). Clonal complex (CC) 121 (25.6%), CC9 (22.6%), CC1 (11.3%), CC3 (10.5%), CC191 (4.5%), CC7 (4.5%) and CC31 (3.8%) were the most frequent MLST clones. Among the 26 cgMLST clusters obtained, 5 of them persisted after sanitization and were re-isolated during the follow-up sampling. All the CC121 harboured the Tn6188_qac gene for tolerance to benzalkonium chloride and the stress survival islet SSI-2. The CC3, CC7, CC9, CC31 and CC191 carried the SSI-1. All the CC9 and CC121 strains presented a premature stop codon in the inlA gene. In addition to the Lm Pathogenicity Island 1 (LIPI-1), CC1, CC3 and CC191 harboured the LIPI-3. The application of intensive environmental sampling plans for the detection and WGS analysis of Lm isolates could improve surveillance and early detection of outbreaks.
