This study aimed to detect possible viral agents in backyard poultry where numerous commercial poultry companies are located. The backyard flock had non-vaccinated 30 meat-type chickens and four turkey pullets. Serum samples and tracheal swabs were taken from chickens and turkey pullets showing respiratory signs. Serum antibody levels were measured using commercial ELISA kits against Avian Influenza Virus (AIV), Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV), Infectious Bronchitis Virus (IBV), Avian Metapneumovirus (AMPV), Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG), Mycoplasma synoviae (MS), and Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale (ORT). In addition, tracheal swabs were tested for AIV serotypes H5, H7, and H9, NDV, IBV, AMPV, MG, MS, Pasteurella multocida, Avibacterium paragallinarum, and Bordetella avium by circular amplification technology (CAT). Anti-MS, -IBV, -MG, -NDV, -AMPV, and -ORT IgG antibodies were detected in some chicken sera, while anti-NDV, -MG, -MS, and -ORT IgG antibodies were detected in turkey sera. All avian tracheal swabs were positive for MG; however, IBV was only detected from chicken tracheal samples by CAT. The IBV strains were genotyped by sequencing a part of the S1 glycoprotein gene. Two isolates showed 99.35% and 98.69% nucleotide and 99.02% amino acid similarities with the 4/91 IBV strain. Two strains showed 99.35% nucleotide and 100% amino acid sequence identity to each other. Turkeys and chickens in the flock had MG and MG/IBV co-infections, respectively. Consequently, the presence of mutants of 4/91 IBV genotypes and MG found in backyard poultry could be a potential epidemiological source for commercial flocks in poultry integrations.

The objective of this study was to determine Salmonella contamination levels, presence and serovar distribution in broiler carcasses before and after chilling, as well as to evaluate the effectiveness of chilling process. A total of 96 pooled neck skin samples (PNSS) of 48 prechill (PreC) and 48 postchill (PosC) carcasses, representing 480 broilers collected in 6 mo' period were analyzed using ISO 6579-2:2012 Miniaturized Most Probable Number (ISO-mMPN) technique. Species confirmation and serovar identification was performed by Salmonella-specific real-time PCR (Salm-PCR) and conventional serotyping, respectively. Mean Salmonella count was 1.84 log₁₀ MPN/g in PreC, and 1.48 log₁₀ MPN/g in PosC samples, indicating a statistically significant reduction of 0.36 log₁₀ MPN/g (p < 0.05) in the counts by plant's air chill system. Salmonella positivity reduced from 97.9% (47/48) in PreC to 85.42% (41/48) in PosC samples, confirmed by Salm-PCR with identified serovars as S. Virchow (89.77 %) followed by S. Schwarzengrund (9.09%) and S. Bredeney (1.14%). Persistence of high load and prevalence of Salmonella with serovar Virchow dominance (other than the ones mandated in current guidelines) in the final product contributes significant and up to date data to relevant literature, and provides unbiased epidemiological reference to legal authorities for future relevant revisions.

Mekanik ayrılmış kanatlı eti (MAKE), frankfurter, bologna, mortadella, hotdog, surimi, kamaboko gibi emülsifiye et ürünleri, burger, nugget, kroket, pattie gibi formlu ve kaplamalı ürünler, hazır çorba ile jerky gibi kürlenmiş kurutulmuş et ürünleri üretiminde çeşitli ülkelerde yaygın olarak kullanılmaktadır. Ülkemizde ise 2007 yılından itibaren sadece ısıl işlem görmüş emülsifiye kanatlı eti ürünlerinde kullanılmakta olup 2012 yılında yasaklanan MAKE, çok kısa bir süre önce yeniden yasal mevzuat içerisinde değerlendirilmiş ve yasal olarak kullanımına 2019’da izin verilmiştir. Bu derleme makalesinde, MAKE’nin tanımı, elde edilmesinde kullanılan sistemler, bileşimi, kimyasal ve mikrobiyolojik riskleri, muhafazası, tespit yöntemleri, kullanım alanları ve mevzuattaki yeri ile ilgili güncel bilgilere yer verilmiştir.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which emerged from Wuhan, China in 2020, economic, social, and psychological problems occurred all over the world, mandating implementation of strict curfew, quarantine, travel restriction measures, and vaccinations against the virus. Though the source of the virus was not clearly revealed, initial case reports from a market in Huanan selling animal products, coupled with sequence analyses of the isolates, revealed close similarity to coronavirus isolated from bats (RatG13) and pangolins, questioning the suspect source of SARS-CoV-2 as zoonotic. Additionally, epidemiological and experimental studies indicated the presence of SARS-CoV-2, and its specific antibodies in many animals such as cats, dogs, ferrets, calves, and deer. Besides, determination detecting the virus in water samples including treated waters from wastewater treatment plants, fecal shedding, and possible fecal-oral transmission of the virus gained importance. Accordingly, vegetables and fruits irrigated with contaminated water, and foods such as shellfish grown in contaminated waters had the risk of carrying the virus. Although one of the most effective ways for protection against SARS-CoV-2 is mass and booster vaccinations, the emergence of new variants raises concerns on vaccines’ effectiveness against these variants. Thus, urgent implementation of one health concept addressing human, animal, and environmental health as a whole is mandatory to overcome this and other possible future pandemics. In this article, emergence, spread, zoonotic potential, fecal-oral transmission risk, and the possible role of food and water in the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus were reviewed based on up-to-date published data.

There is a continuous rise in the incidence of foodborne infections caused by Campylobacter spp., the main causative agent of bacterial gastroenteritis worldwide. Campylobacteriosis, Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli are the most frequently encountered species and pose serious health threats due to their resistance to antimicrobials. Assurance of microbial safety of poultry and cattle, the most important reservoirs of Campylobacter spp., meat and meat products, milk and dairy obtained from these animals, and detection and/or concentration determination of the pathogen both in the farm and in food ready for consumption, mandates required regulatory updates in current legislations. By taking the zoonotic potential of the agent into consideration, in this review article, aetiology, growth and pathogenicity traits; epidemiology and prevalence; pathogenesis and symptoms of the infection; sampling, isolation/enumeration, identification and rapid methods for the detection of the pathogen; treatment of disease and antimicrobial resistance information; and prevention and control requirements and regulatory approach strategies were presented based on data from current literature.

Advances in diagnostic techniques and their widespread use for infectious agents revealed the considerably high current prevalence of viral agents in foodborne and waterborne diseases. Foodborne and waterborne viruses are indicated to cause not only gastroenteritis and hepatitis but also neurological disorders, respiratory tract diseases, myocarditis, glomerulonephritis and hemorrhagic fever, with a particularly high mortality rate in infants/children and in individuals with immune deficiency. Additionally, due to their resistance to environmental conditions and food processes compared to other microorganisms, elimination of these viruses by heat and high pressure applications, natural antiviral compounds, UV applications and conventional cleaning-disinfection remains difficult even inadequate. In protection from viral infections, vaccine applications together with GMP, GHP and HACCP system approaches in production seem to be the most effective approaches to ensure the minimization of viruses in food environment and in public. In this review article, up-to-date information is presented on the general characteristics and the diseases caused by enterotropic viruses; NoV, AstV, RoV, AdV and hepatotropic viruses; HAV and HEV, with a particularly high worldwide prevalence, as well as their epidemiology, prevention and their control measures.