Abstract

Influenza A and salmonellosis are two of the most relevant zoonotic infectious diseases. Influenza A is one of the main threats to public health worldwide and is considered one of the causative agents of pandemics. Salmonellosis, meanwhile, has been identified by the World Health Organization as one of the four main causes of diarrheal diseases in the world. Poultry is an important source of both influenza A and Salmonella spp. but little is known about these potential threats in poultry products in Guatemala. The presence of influenza A virus antibodies and Salmonella spp. was studied in backyard poultry eggs sold in the El Guarda market in Guatemala City. 377 backyard poultry eggs were collected throughout seven months and sampled for hemagglutination inhibition test to determine the presence of antibodies to influenza virus A (H5N2 and H7N3) and cultured for Salmonella isolation. The eggs of chicken (Gallus gallus), turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), quail (Coturnix coturnix), mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos) and muscovy duck (Cairina moschata) were sampled. Twenty-six percent of the eggs carried H5N2 antibodies, 27% carried H7N3 antibodies and 1.3% carried Salmonella spp. The presence of Escherichia coli inside the sampled eggs was an incidental common finding. These results suggest that backyard poultry eggs sold at markets could be a potential source of influenza A virus and Salmonella for the human population. The evidence found in the sampled eggs also shows that these potential pathogens are circulating in backyard poultry populations in Guatemala.