Listeria monocytogenes in game meat cured sausages

Listeria monocytogenes is a ubiquitous gram-positive bacterium, widespread in the environment (soils, water, effluents, plants, vegetables), that causes listerioris in susceptible individuals. It has been found in the intestinal tract of lots of wild and domestic animals and it can be isolated from faeces of animals (GRAY and KILLINGER, 1966) and humans (ADZITEY and HUDA, 2010). Listeria monocytogenes can also colonize various inert surfaces and can form biofilms on food-processing surfaces (ROBERTS and WIEDMAN, 2003). Moreover consumption of meat products is one of the most important risk factors for human Listeria outbreaks. There are 13 distinct serotypes, based on O and H antigens. The most virulent are serovars 1/2a, 1/2b, 4b, and 1/2c causing 95 % of the clinical cases (DOUMITH et al., 2004), using Multiplex PCR they could be separated into 4 distinct groups. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) is the most widely used method for molecular typing of Listeria monocytogenes in Europe (EFSA, 2009). It is based on separation of restriction fragment of a whole genome, which is separated by electrophoresis in pulsed field. The aims of this study were: (i) to evaluate presence of Listeria monocytogenes in game meat fermented sausages of different species (chamois, wild boar, roe deer, red deer) and during game meat chain, from raw meat to ready to use products; (ii) to evaluate presence of different Listeria monocytogenes subtypes during game meat chain. Data will also be useful for future risk analysis.