Characterization and Antimicrobial Resistance of Non-Typhoidal from Poultry Carcass Rinsates in Selected Abattoirs of KwaZulu Natal, South Africa.

Contaminated poultry is one of the major sources of food-borne non-typhoidal (NTS). The aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of along the slaughter process in low- and high-throughput poultry abattoirs in South Africa and to determine their characteristics. Samples were collected from 500 chicken carcass rinsates at various processing stages in three abattoirs. detection and identification was conducted in accordance with the ISO 6579 methodology. NTS serotyping was performed with serotype-specific PCRs. The Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method was used to determine antimicrobial resistance in PCR was used to analyze thirteen antimicrobial genes and four virulence genes. spp. was detected in 11.8% (59/500; CI: 9.5-15) of the samples tested. The predominant serovars were Enteritidis (n = 21/59; 35.59%) and Typhimurium (n = 35; 59.32%). Almost all isolates were susceptible to all tested antimicrobials except three. Despite the low resistance to tetracyclines at the phenotypic level, approximately half of the strains carried genes, which may be due to "silent" antimicrobial resistance genes. Diverse virulence genes were detected among the confirmed NTS serotypes. We found a predominance of Enteritidis and Typhimurium from chicken carcasses with diverse virulence and resistance genes. As we detected differences between the slaughterhouses, an in-depth study should be performed on the risk of in low- and high-throughput abattoirs. The integrated monitoring and surveillance of NTS in poultry is warranted in South Africa to aid in the design of mitigation strategies.