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. 2024 Jul 15;66(1):32.
doi: 10.1186/s13028-024-00747-9.

Foodborne pathogenic bacteria in wild European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus)

Maria Fredriksson-Ahomaa  1 , Venla Johansson  2 , Viivi Heljanko  2 , Elina Nuotio  2 , Heini Nihtilä  3 , Annamari Heikinheimo  2   4 , Rauni Kivistö  2
Affiliations

Foodborne pathogenic bacteria in wild European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus)

Maria Fredriksson-Ahomaa et al. Acta Vet Scand. .

Abstract

Background: European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) are widely distributed across Europe. They may play an important role by spreading zoonotic bacteria in the environment and to humans and animals. The aim of our work was to study the prevalence and characteristics of the most important foodborne bacterial pathogens in wild hedgehogs.

Results: Faecal samples from 148 hospitalised wild hedgehogs originating from the Helsinki region in southern Finland were studied. Foodborne pathogens were detected in 60% of the hedgehogs by PCR. Listeria (26%) and STEC (26%) were the most common foodborne pathogens. Salmonella, Yersinia, and Campylobacter were detected in 18%, 16%, and 7% of hedgehogs, respectively. Salmonella and Yersinia were highly susceptible to the tested antimicrobials. Salmonella Enteritidis and Listeria monocytogenes 2a were the most common types found in hedgehogs. All S. Enteritidis belonged to one sequence type (ST11), forming four clusters of closely related isolates. L. monocytogenes was genetically more diverse than Salmonella, belonging to 11 STs. C. jejuni ST45 and ST677, Y. pseudotuberculosis O:1 of ST9 and ST42, and Y. enterocolitica O:9 of ST139 were also found.

Conclusions: Our study shows that wild European hedgehogs should be considered an important source of foodborne pathogens, and appropriate hygiene measures after any contact with hedgehogs and strict biosecurity around farms are therefore important.

Keywords: European hedgehog; MLST; PCR; Prevalence; WGS; Zoonotic bacteria.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Minimum spanning tree of 31 Salmonella isolates from wild hedgehogs in southern Finland during 2020-22. Nodes are numbered according to Table 5. Number of allelic differences (ADs) between the isolates are indicated on the connecting lines. Clusters are shaded in grey and a cluster distance threshold of maximum 10 ADs was used
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Minimum spanning tree of 29 Listeria monocytogenes isolates from wild hedgehogs in southern Finland during 2020-22. Nodes are numbered according to Table 5. Number of allelic differences (ADs) between the isolates are indicated on the connecting lines. Clusters are shaded in grey and a cluster distance threshold of maximum 10 ADs was used
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