Distribution of antibiotic resistance genes among Staphylococcus species isolated from ready-to-eat foods

Publication date: Available online 27 June 2019Source: Journal of Food and Drug AnalysisAuthor(s): Yu-Ting Wang, Yu-Tzu Lin, Tsai-Wen Wan, Der-Yuan Wang, Hsu-Yang Lin, Che-Yang Lin, Yu-Chih Chen, Lee-Jene TengAbstractWe investigated antibiotic resistance of staphylococci isolated from 1128 samples of high-circulating RTE foods in Taiwan. A total of 111 Staphylococcus aureus and 709 coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) comprising 23 species were isolated. The prevalence of S. aureus differed in various category of RTE foods, highest in fresh-cut fruits/vegetables (20.5%) and lowest in low-water activity (LWA) foods (0.7%). The overall staphylococcal contamination was highest in fresh-cut fruits/vegetables (62.2%), in which multiple isolates (up to 10) or species (up to 6) in single sample were frequently found. Distinct distribution of species contributed to unique feature in each category. Prevalence of antibiotic-resistant S. aureus was higher in fresh-cut fruits/vegetables samples (14.2% in 127) compared to other food categories (0–7.1%). A total of 4 MRSA carrying SCCmec type IV or VT were identified (3.6% in 111), in which 3 belonged to sequence type ST59 and one was ST5. Among CoNS, S. epidermidis and S. warneri exhibited higher non-intrinsic antibiotic resistance than other species. Of 41 methicillin-resistant CoNS (5.8% in 709) isolates, SCCmec type IV (n = 16) and type VT (n = 6) were most frequent. Isolates of S. saprophyticus, S. xylosus and S. sciuri displ...
Source: Journal of Food and Drug Analysis - Category: Food Science Source Type: research