Genomic epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance of nontyphoidal Salmonella in retail meats in Hong Kong: A comprehensive surveillance study using whole-genome sequencing

作者：Ivan Tak-Fai Wong, Iain Chi-Fung Ng, Dorothy Hong-Ting Cheung, Wing-Yin Tam, Choi-Ying Wong, Sharon Ka-Yee Fung, Ho-Ching Tong, Shue-Kei Chan, Ting Wu, E. Yeung, Jiaying Zhang, Franklin Wang‐Ngai Chow, Polly H. M. Leung, G. G. Siu · 发表于：Food Research International · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1016/j.foodres.2025.117918 · 被引用次数：3 · 研究领域：Salmonella and Campylobacter epidemiology、Listeria monocytogenes in Food Safety、Antibiotic Resistance in Bacteria

Nontyphoidal Salmonella (NTS) is a major foodborne pathogen, and rising antimicrobial resistance (AMR) threatens treatment efficacy. Salmonella remained the leading cause of bacterial foodborne outbreaks in Hong Kong, but data regarding its prevalence in retail meats are limited. This study investigated the prevalence, serotype distribution, AMR patterns, and genetic relationships of Salmonella in retail pork, beef, and chicken collected across Hong Kong from July 2022 to June 2023. We found a high overall Salmonella prevalence (27.6 %), particularly in pork (50.6 %) and fresh, non-chilled meat (46.2 %), suggesting potential contamination during slaughter, with the non-chilled conditions potentially promoting further bacterial growth. The dominant serotypes ( S. typhimurium , S. Rissen, S. Derby, S. London), mainly from pork and beef, mirrored the top serotypes and key AMR profiles (ciprofloxacin, ceftriaxone) found in local human clinical cases, highlighting the food chain's relevance. High rates of multidrug non-susceptibility (68.7 %) and non-susceptibility to critical antibiotics like ciprofloxacin (69.6 %), ceftriaxone (7.8 %), and azithromycin (8.3 %) were observed. Phylogenetic analysis identified multiple genetically related clusters containing both human and food isolates, with clonal spread predominant in pork/beef serotypes and plasmid-mediated AMR determinants in chicken serotypes. Notably, several clusters showed non-susceptibility to multiple first-line antimicr...