Challenging the "gold standard" of colony-forming units - Validation of a multiplex real-time PCR for quantification of viable Campylobacter spp. in meat rinses.

Campylobacter jejuni is the leading bacterial food-borne pathogen in Europe. Despite the accepted limits of cultural detection of the fastidious bacterium, the "gold standard" in food microbiology is still the determination of colony-forming units (CFU). As an alternative, a live/dead differentiating qPCR has been established, using propidium monoazide (PMA) as DNA-intercalating crosslink agent for inactivating DNA from dead, membrane-compromised cells.

Control of paratuberculosis: who, why and how. A review of 48 countries.

Paratuberculosis, a chronic disease affecting ruminant livestock, is caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). It has direct and indirect economic costs, impacts animal welfare and arouses public health concerns.

Variability of Pasteurella multocida isolated from Icelandic sheep and detection of the toxA gene.

Pasteurella multocida can be part of the upper respiratory flora of animals, but under conditions of stress or immunocompromisation, the bacteria can cause severe respiratory symptoms. In this study, we compared 10 P. multocida isolates from Icelandic sheep with respiratory symptoms and 19 isolates from apparently healthy abattoir sheep.

Broiler chickens as source of human fluoroquinolone-resistant Escherichia coli, Iceland.

To investigate feed as a source for fluoroquinolone-resistant Escherichia coli in broiler chickens, we compared antimicrobial drug-resistant E. coli from broiler feed and broilers with ciprofloxacin-resistant human clinical isolates by using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Feed was implicated as a source for ciprofloxacin-resistant broiler-derived E.

Antimicrobial resistance of Campylobacter spp. isolated from broiler flocks in Iceland 2001-2005.

Minimum inhibitory concentrations of six antimicrobial agents were determined for one Campylobacter sp. isolate from each of the 362 Campylobacter-positive commercial chicken flocks in Iceland in the years 2001-2005. Of all isolates tested, 6.

Risk factors for Campylobacter spp. colonization in broiler flocks in Iceland.

We sampled 1,091 Icelandic broiler flocks at slaughter from May 2001 to December 2003 to determine the prevalence of, and investigate risk factors for the presence of, Campylobacter spp. at the flock level. Approximately 15% of the flocks were positive for Campylobacter spp.