Abstract:In order to investigate the potential migration of antibiotic resistant (ART) bacteria from cold fresh chicken to humans during handling in production and consumption, selective culture technology and IonS5TM XL sequencing platform were used for counting and diversity analysis of tetracycline-(TETr) and sulfamethoxazole-resistant bacteria (SULr) on the surface of six handlers’ hands contacting with cold fresh chicken products. The results showed that the two ART bacteria from the handlers’ hands significantly increased to 4.80×10~2.66×106 CFU/cm2 after contacting with cold fresh chicken. Furthermore, 21 and 19 genera of shared flora were identified in the TETr and SULr bacteria, respectively, among which the multi-drug resistance of avian and human Acinetobacter and other eight genera bacteria had been already confirmed by extensive research, and the potential transmission of antibiotic resistance genes between avian and human isolates were existed. However, the characteristics of antibiotic resistance of Buttiauxella and other 14 genera had not been reported yet. Our results illustrated the migration of TETr and SULr bacteria from cold fresh chicken products to the handlers' hands by direct contact, and provided a basis for risk assessment of antibiotic resistance exposure to chicken products handlers.