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Background: Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Heidelberg (antigenic formula 1,4,[5],12:r:1,2) is a serovar of the O:4 (B) serogroup. S. Heidelberg is commonly found in poultry meat in North America. In the U.S. and Canada, it has caused numerous infections in chickens. In the U.S., this serovar has caused a number of outbreaks that included the recent outbreak (October, 2013), linked to raw chicken; this outbreak was caused by a multidrug resistant S. Heidelberg strain (resistant to ampicillin, chloramphenicol, gentamicin, kanamycin, streptomycin, sulfisoxazole, and tetracycline). S. Heidelberg accounts for the 8.6% of ceftriaxone-resistant Salmonella isolated from humans in the U.S. Recently, a phage typing scheme was developed for serovar Heidelberg in Canada; this scheme recognizes 49 phage types.
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Phylogenetic and pan-genomic analyses that included two of the sequenced S. Heidelberg strains and other Salmonella serovars concluded that S. Heidelberg (i) belongs to clade A, according to den Bakker et al. (2011) classification, (ii) appears to have a single evolutionary origin, and (iii) contains 74 gene families unique to this serovar.
Animal reservoir:Serovar Heidelberg is mostly found in Poultry, including chickens and turkeys, are the main reservoirs for serovar Heidelberg. It has also been found in other animals such as cattle, swine, and dogs.
Geographical distribution: Serovar Heidelberg has been reported worldwide, mainly in North America.
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Year | Location | Associated source | Number of cases |
| 2018-2019 | Australia | Unidentified | 59 |
| 2016 | US: multistate | Contact with dairy calves | 56 |
2013-2014 | US: multistate | 634 | |
2011 | US: multistate | 190 | |
2011 | US: multistate | 136 | |
2011 | Europe | 22 | |
2004 | Canada | 32 |
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1 Tyson Foods, Inc. issued a recall of around 33,840 pounds of mechanically separated chicken products due to potential contamination with Salmonella Heidelberg. These products were manufactured on October 11, 2013, and distributed exclusively for institutional use across the nation.
Relevant links:
- https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2023.1282832/pdf#:~:text=Salmonella%20enterica%20subspecies%20enterica%20serovar%20Heidelberg%20(Salmonella%20Heidelberg)%20is%20primarily,Clothier%20and%20Byrne%2C%202016).
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3768931/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34932458/#:~:text=We%20report%20a%20multistate%20Salmonella,indicators%20of%20severity%20and%20invasiveness.
- https://archive.cdc.gov/#/details?url=https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/heidelberg-11-16/index.html
- https://archive.cdc.gov/www_cdc_gov/salmonella/heidelberg-10-13/index.html
- https://archive.cdc.gov/www_cdc_gov/salmonella/2011/chicken-liver-1-11-2012.html
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25865382/
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9151100/
- https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/reports-publications/canada-communicable-disease-report-ccdr/monthly-issue/2005-31/restaurant-foodhandler-associated-outbreak-salmonella-heidelberg-gastroenteritis-identified-calls-local-telehealth-service-edmonton.html
- https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/screen/notification/680242
- https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/screen/notification/679279
- https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/screen/notification/609282
- https://archive.cdc.gov/www_cdc_gov/salmonella/heidelberg-01-14/advice-institutions.html