Hazeleger Wilma C, Jacobs-Reitsma Wilma F, Lina Peter H C, de Boer Albert G, Bosch Thijs, van Hoek Angela H A M, Beumer Rijkelt R
Laboratory of Food Microbiology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands.
RIKILT Institute of Food Safety, Wageningen, Netherlands.
PLoS One. 2018 Jan 11;13(1):e0190647. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0190647. eCollection 2018.
The transmission cycles of the foodborne pathogens Campylobacter and Salmonella are not fully elucidated. Knowledge of these cycles may help reduce the transmission of these pathogens to humans.
METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The presence of campylobacters and salmonellas was examined in 631 fresh fecal samples of wild insectivorous bats using a specially developed method for the simultaneous isolation of low numbers of these pathogens in small-sized fecal samples (≤ 0.1 g). Salmonella was not detected in the feces samples, but thermotolerant campylobacters were confirmed in 3% (n = 17) of the bats examined and these pathogens were found in six different bat species, at different sites, in different ecosystems during the whole flying season of bats. Molecular typing of the 17 isolated strains indicated C. jejuni (n = 9), C. coli (n = 7) and C. lari (n = 1), including genotypes also found in humans, wildlife, environmental samples and poultry. Six strains showed unique sequence types.
CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: This study shows that insectivorous bats are not only carriers of viral pathogens, but they can also be relevant for the transmission of bacterial pathogens. Bats should be considered as carriers and potential transmitters of Campylobacter and, where possible, contact between bats (bat feces) and food or feed should be avoided.
食源性病原体弯曲杆菌和沙门氏菌的传播循环尚未完全阐明。了解这些循环可能有助于减少这些病原体向人类的传播。
方法/主要发现：使用一种专门开发的方法，在631份野生食虫蝙蝠的新鲜粪便样本中检测弯曲杆菌和沙门氏菌，该方法可同时从小尺寸粪便样本（≤0.1克）中分离出少量这些病原体。粪便样本中未检测到沙门氏菌，但在所检查的3%（n = 17）的蝙蝠中确认了耐热弯曲杆菌，并且在蝙蝠整个飞行季节的不同地点、不同生态系统中的六种不同蝙蝠物种中发现了这些病原体。对17株分离菌株的分子分型表明有空肠弯曲杆菌（n = 9）、结肠弯曲杆菌（n = 7）和海鸥弯曲杆菌（n = 1），包括在人类、野生动物、环境样本和家禽中也发现的基因型。六株菌株显示出独特的序列类型。
结论/意义：本研究表明，食虫蝙蝠不仅是病毒病原体的携带者，而且它们也可能与细菌病原体的传播有关。蝙蝠应被视为弯曲杆菌的携带者和潜在传播者，并且在可能的情况下，应避免蝙蝠（蝙蝠粪便）与食物或饲料接触。
