Abstract
Synthetic antimicrobials have a negative impact on food quality and consumer health, which is why natural antimicrobials are urgently needed. Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) has gained considerable importance for food poisoning and infection in humans and animals, particularly in biofilms. As a result, this study was conducted to control the CoNS isolated from food samples in Egypt. CoNS isolates were selected on the basis of their antibiotic susceptibility profiles and their biofilm-associated behavior. In this context, a total of 29 different bacteriophages were isolated and, in particular, lytic phages (6 isolates) were selected. The host range and physiological parameters of the lytic phages have been studied. Electron microscopy images showed that lytic phages were members of the families Myoviridae (CoNShP-1, CoNShP-3, and CoNSeP-2 isolates) and Siphoviridae (CoNShP-2, CoNSsP-1, and CoNSeP-1 isolates). CoNShP-1, CoNShP-2, and CoNShP-3 were found to be virulent to Staphylococcus haemolyticus, CoNSsP-1 to Staphylococcus saprophyticus and CoNSeP-1 and CoNSeP-2 to Staphylococcus epidermidis. Interestingly, the CoNShP-3 exhibited a typical polyvalent behavior, where not only lysis CoNS, but also other genera include Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA), Bacillus cereus and Bacillus subtilis. In addition, CoNShP-3 phage showed high stability at different temperatures and pH levels. Indeed, CoNShP-3 phage showed an antibiofilm effect against Staphylococcus epidermidis CFS79 and Staphylococcus haemolyticus CFS43, respectively, while Staphylococcus saprophyticus CFS28 biofilm was completely removed. Finally, CoNShP-3 phage demonstrated a high preservative efficacy over short and long periods of storage against inoculated CoNS in chicken breast sections. In conclusion, this study highlights the control of CoNS pathogens using a polyvalent lytic phage as a natural antibacterial and antibiofilm agent from a food safety perspective.
Highlights
Bacterial contamination-related food poisoning is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developing countries [1]
The results of this study showed that CoNShP-3 phage had a strong lytic activity, and the results of the bacterial challenge experiments confirmed this
The results of this study have shown that coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) strains isolated from food have demonstrated resistance to many antibiotics; are no longer working with traditional antibacterials
Summary
Bacterial contamination-related food poisoning is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developing countries [1]. Several outbreaks of multidrug-resistant CoNS have been reported in intensive care units (ICUs) [6,7]. It may be the cause of significant economic losses [8]. For neonatal ICUs, in particular, it has been found that antibiotic-resistant S. epidermidis and S. haemolyticus strains that form biofilms lead to aggregation and, cause disease among neonates [11]. Such unwanted bacteria can be found in many foods, including processed meat products [12] and dairy products [13]
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