Detection of 3 species of food-borne Arcobacter in chicken products by means of multiplex PCR

Objective: A multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay was developed for rapid detection of Arcobacter butzleri, Arcobacter cryaerophilus and Arcobacter skirrowii in chicken products. Methods: Four primers targeting rpoB genes were designed and the specificity and sensitivity of the multiplex PCR were determined. Then, A. butzleri, A. cryaerophilus and A. skirrowii isolated from chicken products were investigated using this PCR method. Results: The rpoB genes of A. butzleri, A. cryaerophilus and A. skirrowii were successful in specifically amplifying 373, 149 and 236 bp fragments, and these fragments could be detected at the minimum DNA weights of 1, 10, 10 pg, respectively, that 7, 3 and 1 of 16 chicken products were positive for A. butzleri, A. cryaerophilus and A. skirrowii, the coincidence rate with plate-culture method were 100%, 87.5% and 100%, respectively. Conclusion: The multiplex PCR assay is a sim-ple, rapid, sensitive and specific technique for detecting A. butzleri, A. cryaerophilus and A. skirrowii, and could be used for the simultaneous identification of them isolated from chicken products.