Antimicrobial Resistance and Genomic Features Characterization of Salmonella Isolates from Chicken Meat in Saudi Arabia

Although Salmonella is a major cause of human foodborne illnesses worldwide, little is known about its phenotypic and genotypic characteristics in food sources in Saudi Arabia. This study investigated the antimicrobial resistance genes, plasmids, virulence factors and identified serovars in 39 Salmonella enterica strains isolated from chicken meat samples using whole genome sequencing (WGS) technology. The results of this study will improve the information about foodborne Salmonella current state in Saudi Arabia, alarming the emergence of multi-drug resistant S. enterica strains, as well as providing useful data about the resistance and virulence mechanisms.