Prevalence of Campylobacter jejuni In Chicken Meat Marketed In Baghdad Province

Campylobacter are the main cause of human bacterial intestinal disease identified worldwide. Over 90% of cases are caused by C. jejuni and about 5% of cases are caused by C. coli. Mishandling of raw chicken carcasses and consumption of undercooked chicken meat are the major risk factors for human campylobacteriosis. Despite the control measures for reducing cross contamination, the detection of Campylobacter in carcasses after chilling/freezing remains very high. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of C. jejuni in chicken meat sold inBaghdad province. A total of eight live chickens and 20 frozen whole carcass chickens, purchased two per week during a 12-week period(from January 2016 to march 2016), from different markets in Baghdad regions, were examined for the presence of C. jejuni. The results showed that 100% of the live chickens were positive for C. jejuni, while carcasses isolation rates ranged from 0-100%. Bacteriological, biochemical, and microscopic tests were used in the isolation and identification of the isolates as C. jejuni. The results revealed that, this method was highly specific, and can be easily used for reliable and rapid identification. In addition to this , confirmation of C. jejuni isolates was performed using multiplex PCR technique .