Salmonella in the environment: A review on ecology, antimicrobial resistance, seafood contaminations, and human health implications

Salmonella is a genus of Gram-negative bacteria that is responsible for numerous food poisoning outbreaks worldwide. With 93.8 million food-borne illnesses and 155,000 fatalities annually, it has emerged as a significant global public health issue. There are currently more than 2,500 distinct Salmonella serotypes, and more than half of them are associated with Salmonella enterica. An increasing global public health concern for humans and animals is antimicrobial resistance by Salmonella species worldwide. Salmonella infections can be lethal; conditioned with an increased prevalence of multi-drug resistant (MDR) strains in the future. The emergence of MDR Salmonella serotypes is considerably impacting the efficacy of antibiotic treatments. There is a potential association between Salmonella growth and proliferation with different environmental factors such as temperature, precipitation, pollution, nutrient availability, and other climate change-induced phenomena. Seafood and shellfish are common vectors for salmonellosis in humans and other animals and are responsible for food poisoning-related deaths every year. Effective food hygiene, water sanitation, and limiting the use of antibiotics in food animals must be upheld to reduce Salmonella infections. This article provides an overview of pathogenesis, epidemiology, antibiotic resistance, seafood contamination, and environmental factors affecting Salmonella proliferation, in addition to providing an outline of Salmonella infection.