Title: Chlorine inactivation of non-resistant and antibiotic resistant strains of Salmonella Typhimurium isolated from chicken carcasses

Authors: Oscar TP, Rizwana T, Parveen S

Journal: J Food Prot

Accepted date: 2013 Feb 1

Interpretive summary: Antibiotics are used on-the-farm to treat subclinical and clinical bacterial infections of poultry and in the past to promote growth and feed efficiency. Use of antibiotics in live poultry that harbor human pathogens could induce expression of defense mechanisms in the pathogen that make them more resistant to disinfectants, such as chlorine, that are applied later during poultry processing. Thus, the objective of the current study was to test the hypothesis that Salmonella Typhimurium that are resistant to antibiotics are more resistant to chlorine than Salmonella Typhimurium that are not resistant to antibiotics. Results of the present study indicated that the ability of chlorine to kill Salmonella in chilled water was the same for non-resistant and antibiotic resistant strains of Salmonella Typhimurium. Thus, it does not appear that on-farm use of antibiotics would have the unintended consequence of increasing resistance of Salmonella to chlorine applied during poultry processing.