Prevalence and antibiotic resistance of Campylobacter coli isolated from broiler farms in the Marrakesh Safi region, Morocco

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Campylobacteriosis is a common foodborne disease epidemiologically linked to the consumption of poultry products. However, other sources, such as raw or contaminated milk, contaminated water or ice, contact with infected livestock, and pets, are reported. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence and resistance to microbial resistance of Campylobacter coli in broiler farms in the region of Marrakesh Safi, Morocco. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was conducted between May and December 2017 and involved 35 broiler farms. One hundred and five cloacal swabs were collected from the eight provinces in the region of Marrakesh Safi, Morocco. Bacteriology method NM ISO/TS 10272-3: 2013 was used to isolate and identify Campylobacter spp. Molecular identification (polymerase chain reaction) was used for confirmation. A disk diffusion method on Mueller-Hinton agar was used for susceptibility testing. Five antibiotic agents, including first-line drugs, were evaluated. RESULTS: Among 105 samples, 71.4% (75/105) were positive for Campylobacter spp. test and 56% (42/75) of isolates belonged to the species coli. Susceptibility profiles showed that 95.2% of C. coli strains were resistant to ampicillin, 92.8% to erythromycin and tetracycline, 85.7% to ciprofloxacin, and 7.1% to gentamicin. CONCLUSION: This study underlines the need to strengthen implementation of specific control procedures to decrease contamination of poultry meat with Campylobacter spp. and to reduce the use of antibiotics in the poultry sector.