Phenotypic Characterization of Clostridium Species in Sheep Meat

Abstract

The existence of Clostridium species in sheep meat has a public health importance. The current preliminary study was aimed to investigate the prevalence of various Clostridium speciesin sheep meat. Thirty meat samples were randomly collected from butcher's markets at Ismailia province. The collected samples were subjected to the bacteriological examination; moreover, the enumeration of anaerobic count was performed. The total count of anaerobes was 6x103C.F.U./ g; in addition, the prevalence of C. bifermentans, C. sporogens, C. subterminal, and C. perfringens was10%, 43.3%, 30%, 30% sheep meat samples, respectively. C. perfringens is considered one of the main spoilage organisms of meat leading to contaminations of great amount of decomposed meat, which ending with economic losses; bad hygienic conditions in slaughterhouses are the main cause for meat contamination with Clostridium species, since the gastrointestinal tract of slaughtered animals is their natural habitat, the abattoir processing represent a great source for meat surface contamination by these pathogens.