Genomic Diversity, Antimicrobial Resistance, Plasmidome, and Virulence Profiles of Salmonella Isolated from Small Specialty Crop Farms Revealed by Whole-Genome Sequencing

is the leading cause of death associated with foodborne illnesses in the USA. Difficulty in treating human salmonellosis is attributed to the development of antimicrobial resistance and the pathogenicity of strains. Therefore, it is important to study the genetic landscape of , such as the diversity, plasmids, and presence antimicrobial resistance genes (AMRs) and virulence genes. To this end, we isolated from environmental samples from small specialty crop farms (SSCFs) in Northeast Ohio from 2016 to 2021; 80 isolates from 29 -positive samples were subjected to whole-genome sequencing (WGS). In silico serotyping revealed the presence of 15 serotypes. AMR genes were detected in 15% of the samples, with 75% exhibiting phenotypic and genotypic multidrug resistance (MDR). Plasmid analysis demonstrated the presence of nine different types of plasmids, and 75% of AMR genes were located on plasmids. Interestingly, five Newport isolates and one Dublin isolate carried the ACSSuT gene cassette on a plasmid, which confers resistance to ampicillin, chloramphenicol, streptomycin, sulfonamide, and tetracycline. Overall, our results show that SSCFs are a potential reservoir of with MDR genes. Thus, regular monitoring is needed to prevent the transmission of MDR from SSCFs to humans.