Prevalence and Molecular Characterization of Salmonella and Listeria Species in Poultry Meat and the

Master's Thesis from the year 2023 in the subject Chemistry - Food Chemistry, course: Department of Food Hygiene & Control, language: English, abstract: This study investigates the presence of Salmonella spp. and Listeria spp. in broiler chicken meat and products in Menoufia governorate, Egypt. A total of 100 random samples were collected, including 50 fresh chicken cuts (breast and thigh) and 50 frozen breaded half-cooked products (chicken nuggets and chicken burgers). The samples were transported to the Food Hygiene and Control Research Lab, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Sadat City, and analyzed following ISO 6579:2020 for Salmonella spp. and ISO 11290:2017 for Listeria spp. The results revealed Salmonella contamination in 6% of the samples and Listeria contamination in 14%. Among the Salmonella isolates, three serotypes were identified: Salmonella paratyphi A (1%), Salmonella Heidelberg (1%), and Salmonella Typhimurium (4%). Real-time PCR confirmed the presence of the invA gene in all Salmonella-positive samples. For Listeria spp., six species were detected: L. monocytogenes (3%), L. ivanovii (2%), L. seeligeri (2%), L. innocua (3%), L. welshimeri (2%), and L. grayi (2%). This study highlights the significant presence of foodborne pathogens in chicken meat and products, underscoring the need for stringent hygiene practices and regular monitoring to ensure public health safety.