Genomic characterization of molecular markers associated with antimicrobial resistance and virulence of the prevalent isolated from retail chicken meat in the United Arab Emirates.

is a major cause of gastroenteritis worldwide, with broiler meat accounting for most illnesses. Antimicrobial intervention is recommended in severe cases of campylobacteriosis. The emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in is a concerning food safety challenge, and monitoring the trends of AMR is vital for a better risk assessment. This study aimed to characterize the phenotypic profiles and molecular markers of AMR and virulence in the prevalent species contaminating chilled chicken carcasses sampled from supermarkets in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). was detected in 90 (28.6%) out of 315 tested samples, and up to five isolates from each were confirmed using multiplex PCR. The species was detected in 83% (75/90) of the positive samples. Whole-genome sequencing was used to characterize the determinants of AMR and potential virulence genes in 45 non-redundant isolates. We identified nine resistance genes, including four associated with resistance to aminoglycoside ( and ), and three associated with Beta-lactam resistance ( and ), and two linked to tetracycline resistance ( and ), as well as point mutations in (fluoroquinolones resistance), (macrolides resistance), and (streptomycin resistance) genes. A mutation in , conferring resistance to fluoroquinolones, was detected in 93% (42/45) of the isolates and showed a perfect match with the phenotype results. The simultaneous presence of and genes was identified in 86.6% (39/45) of the isolates. analysis identified 7 to 11 virulence factors per each isolate. Some of these factors were prevalent in all examined strains and were associated with adherence ( and ), colonization and immune evasion (capsule biosynthesis and transport, lipooligosaccharide), and invasion (). This study provides the first published evidence from the UAE characterizing virulence, antimicrobial resistance genotype, and phenotype analysis from retail chicken. The prevalent in the UAE retail chicken carries multiple virulence genes and antimicrobial resistance markers and exhibits frequent phenotype resistance to macrolides, quinolones, and tetracyclines. The present investigation adds to the current knowledge on molecular epidemiology and AMR development in non- species in the Middle East and globally.