Prevalence of Staphylococci in commercially processed food products in Karachi-Pakistan

Abstract

Objectives: This study was designed to determine the prevalence of Staphylococci, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), and Methicillin Resistant S. aureus (MRSA) in commercially prepared food items that involve human handling, in Karachi-Pakistan. Methods: In a cross-sectional survey approach, in total 1012 food samples were analyzed. These samples were provided by different food processing industries during 2013 to 2016. Barid-Parker agar plates with egg yolk tellurite (Oxoid) along with Mannitol Salt Agar (BioM), Staph-chromo agar (Merck), Staphylococcus 110 Agar (BioM), and Blood Agar (Oxoid) were used for isolation and identification of Staphylococci. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used for amplification of mecA gene and specie identification via 16s RNA. Results: Total 723 samples (71.4%) showed the presence of Staphylococci. Out of 723 staphylococcal isolates, 367 (36.2%) were S. aureus and 85 (8.3%) isolates were confirmed as MRSA. Molecular studies for MRSA typing showed that most of the isolates (74.1%) belong to SCCmecA IV and 20% MRSA isolates were SCCmecA type II and 5.8% isolates carried SCCmecA type III. The MRSA isolates of SCCmecA type II belong to agr type I, while majority (67%) of the isolates carry agr type II. Conclusion: This study suggested that majority of MRSA isolates recovered from commercial food items belongs to SCCmecA IV and human handling is a major factor for introduction of staphylococci in processed food items. J Microbiol Infect Dis 2017; 7(2): 83-87 

Keywords

• Staphylococci,S. aureus,Methicillin Resistant S. aureus

Kaynakça

1. 1. Lambrechts AA, Human IS, Doughari JH, Lues JFR. Bacterial contamination of the hands of food handlers as indicator of hand washing efficacy in some convenient food industries in South Africa. Pak J Med Sci 2014; 30 (4):755-758.
2. 2. Hennekinne JA, De Buyser ML, Dragacci S. Staphylococcus aureus and its food poisoning toxins: characterization and outbreak investigation. FEMS Microbiol Rev 2012; 36: 815- 836.
3. 3. Kadariya J, Smith TC, Thapaliya D. Staphylococcus aureus and staphylococcal foodborne disease: An ongoing challenge in public health. BioMed Res Int 2014. doi: 10.1155/2014/827965.
4. 4. David MZ, Daum RS. Community‐associated methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus: epidemiology and clinical consequences of an emerging epidemic. Clin Microbiol Rev 2010; 23: 616‐687.
5. 5. Benntt W, Lancette GA. Bacteriological Analytical Manual (Chapter 12): Staphylococcus aureus. Department of Health and Human Services, 8th edition. US Food and Drug Administration, 2001.
6. 6. Mirani ZA, Aziz M, Khan MN, Lal I, Hassan NU, Khan SI. Biofilm formation and dispersal of Staphylococcus aureus under the influence of oxacillin. Microb Pathog 2013; 61–62C: 66–72.
7. 7. Jones TF, Kellum ME, Porter SS, Bell M, Schaffner W. An outbreak of community-acquired foodborne illness caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Emerg Infect Dis 2002; 8: 82-84.
8. 8. Boyle-Vavra S, Ereshefsky B, Wang CC, Daum RS. Successful multiresistant community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus lineage from Taipei, Taiwan, that carries either the novel staphylococcal chromosome cassette mec (SCCmec) type VT or SCCmec type IV. J Clin Microbiol 2005; 43: 4719-4730.

9. 9. Song JH, Hsueh PR, Chung DR, et al. (2011) Spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus between the community and the hospitals in Asian countries: an ANSORP study. J Antimicrob Chemother 2011; 66:1061-1069.
10. 10. Koneman EWAS, Janda WM, Schreckenberger PC, Winn WC, In: The Gram positive cocci: Staphylococci and related organims. In Color Atlas and Textbook of Diagnostic Microbiology. 5. Koneman EW, Ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott-Raven; 1997; 551–576.