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Campylobacteriosis is a contagious and zoonotic infection characterized by abortion and infertility in cattle and sheep. The objective of this study was to investigate Campylobacter spp. cause to abortion in sheep herds in Kars province. For this purpose, a total of 350 vaginal swab samples obtained from sheep with abortion were examined by cultural and molecular methods. Swab samples were inoculated on Preston Campylobacter Selective Agar for isolation of Campylobacter species. Following the incubation, suspected colonies were subjected to Gram staining, mobility, oxidase and catalase tests for identification. Multiplex PCR (m-PCR) was used for the identification of Campylobacter isolates at species level. Campylobacter spp. was isolated in 8 (2.28%) of the 350 vaginal swab samples examined. Of 3 isolates were identified as Campylobacter jejuni and 5 were C. coli by m-PCR. According to the data obtained from this study, it was revealed that Campylobacter species should be taken into consideration in the abortion cases of sheep in this region. Considering the risk of this infection both in terms of animal health and human health, it is thought that more attention should be given to protection and control measures.

In temperate climates, a seasonal trend was observed in the incidence of human campylobacteriosis cases, with peaks reported in spring and autumn in some countries, or in summer in others; a similar trend was observed in Campylobacter spp. dairy cattle fecal shedding, suggesting that cattle may play a role in the seasonal peak of human infection. The objectives of this study were to assess if a seasonal trend in thermophilic Campylobacter spp. contamination of raw milk exists and to evaluate a possible relation between this and the increase of human campylobacteriosis incidence in summer months. The results showed a mean prevalence of 1.6% of milk samples positive for thermophilic Campylobacter spp. with a wide range in different months during the three years considered of 0.0-3.1%. The statistical analysis showed a significant difference (PCampylobacter spp. between warmer and cooler months (2.3% vs 0.6%). The evidence of a seasonal trend in thermophilic Campylobacter spp. contamination of raw milk sold for direct consumption, with an increase of the prevalence in warmer months, may represent one of the possible links between seasonal trend in cattle fecal shedding and seasonal trend in human campylobacteriosis.

Although poultry meat is considered as the main source for human Campylobacter infections, there is limited information about non-poultry sources. The present study was aimed to investigate the prevalence and the antibiotic resistance of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. in fecal samples of the cattle and sheep in Shiraz, Iran. A total of 302 fecal samples were obtained from clinically healthy, slaughtered cattle and sheep from Shiraz slaughterhouse. The animals were clinically healthy before being slaughtered. The samples were cultured according to the specific cultivation method under thermophilic conditions. The susceptibility of Campylobacter isolates were determined for 13 antimicrobial agents. All enriched samples and cultured isolates were targeted for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detection of 16S rRNA and multiplex PCR for determining their species. Among 302 fecal samples, 65 (21.5%) and 205 (67.8%) samples were positive for the presence of Campylobacter species with the cultivation and PCR techniques, respectively. All 65 distinct isolates were susceptible to neomycin and colistin and the isolates showed high resistance to cephalotin (83.0%) and ciprofloxacin (67.7%). After the multiplex PCR, 78.5% of total positive samples showed the simultaneous presence of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli. In conclusion, the results emphasized that non-poultry farms are important as a possible source of Campylobacter infections.