Isolation and identification of Helicobacter pullorum from caecal content of broiler chickens in Mashhad, Iran

The presence of Helicobacter pullorum in intestinal tract of broiler chickens may be a potential risk for human health. In this study، a total of 100 caecal samples of broilers carcasses from 20 flocks at a poultry abattoir in Mashhad suburb were tested for the presence of H. pullorum using modified conventional culture method by combination of culturing on Brucella sheep blood agar and a filtering technique. Suspected colonies were determined as H. pullorum using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) by amplifying a 447 bp fragment of the 16SrRNA gene of this bacteria. 41% of caecal content samples and samples from 12 broiler flocks (60%) were determined as positive for the presence of H. pullorum. This is the first report of H. pullorum in Iranian poultry flocks. The results showed high prevalence of this bacterium in broiler chickens in this area of Iran. It seems using combination of conventional culture method and PCR assay based on amplification from conserved genes allows reliable detection and identification of H. pullorum.