Isolation of proteus spp. bacterial pathogens from raw minced meat in Alkarkh area, Baghdad provelance

Abstract

The aim of the study was to isolate proteus bacteria species from raw minced meat obtained from some butcheries in Alkarkh area. A total of 60 raw minced meat samples were collected from meat shops in the Alkarkh area-Baghdad Province/Iraq. The samples were analyzed for the presence of proteus spp. bacteria using MacConkey, Blood, and Selective agar. A total of isolates that satisfied the preliminary biochemical tests were further confirmed by using the API 20E assay, Vitek2 Diagnostic Method, and a final confirmation test by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The proportion of proteus spp. bacteria was 8.3% obtained from all the bacteria isolated in minced meat samples. Although most of the species identified are pathogenic to humans, some strains are known to foodborne outbreaks cause even in countries with proper public health facilities. It is recommended that effective food safety education and training of personnel that handle food at retail points will help to reduce the effect of these pathogens on humans.