Universitas Scientiarum (Jun 2006)
EPIDEMIOLOGICAL RELATIONSHIPS AMONG STRAINS OF Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica, ISOLATED FROM HUMANS, POULTRY AND FOOD
Abstract
Human gastro-enteritis caused by Salmonella enterica is a major health problem in developing countries such as Colombia. In some parts of Colombia, the disease is endemic, and its incidence appears to be increasing, with outbreaks and sporadic cases of diarrhea becoming more frequent. At this time, it is not very clear if either poultry or food is responsible for human salmonellosis contamination in Colombia. The objectives of the present study were to analyze the Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis profiles (PFGEPs) of Salmonella enterica from human patients, poultry and food found in Colombia and to determine the epidemiologic associations between these strains. Twenty-nine isolates of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica were isolated from: 10 pediatric patients in Bogotá, D.C., 10 different types of food and 9 chickens. All isolates were analyzed by means of the molecular technique XbaI PFGE. Eleven different patterns were observed. These patterns consisted of 12-17 restriction fragments, each with a molecular size of 30-800 kb. The results suggested that Salmonella enterica was transmitted from poultry and food to humans. Surprisingly, among the strains investigated it was impossible to find a direct linkage between poultry and food, indicating, either that Salmonella was incorporated into the food during food processing by handlers, or that foods other than poultry products were the source of human infection. This study about the molecular epidemiology of Salmonella enterica in Colombia provided new information about possible means of human contamination, and should permit health institutions to take adequate measures to avoid sporadic cases and outbreaks of salmonellosis.
