Abstract
Milk is an important food in Egypt and most of it is sold as raw milk in informal markets. This study was conducted to investigate the public health risks of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus in milk sold in informal markets in Egypt. A total of 121 milk samples were analyzed for occurrence, virulence genes and antibiotic resistance of E. coli and S. aureus. A total of 35/121 (28.9%) of milk samples were contaminated with 16/121 (13.2%) E. coli, 22/121 (18.2%) S. aureus, and 3/121 (2.5%) both isolates. Shiga-toxin producing E. coli (STEC), Enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) and Enterotoxigenic S. aureus were detected in 5/121 (4.1%), 2/121 (1.7%) and 8/121 (6.6%) of the examined milk samples, respectively. Multiple drug resistances (MDRs) were showed by 14/16 (87.5%) and 21/22 (95.5%) of E. coli and S. aureus isolates, respectively. E. coli isolates showed high resistance for cephalothin (87.5%), ampicillin (68.8%) and tetracycline (68.8%), but were sensitive for gentamicin and chloramphenicol. Resistance phenotypes of E. coli were diverse; however, STEC isolates were significantly associated with co-resistance to cephalothin, ampicillin and tetracycline (P< 0.05). Two (9.1%) of S. aureus isolates were methicillin-resistant (MRSA) but sensitive to gentamicin (GS-MRSA). Five (22.7%) of S. aureus isolates were gentamicin-resistant methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (GR-MSSA). S. aureus isolates also showed high resistance for ampicillin (100%), tetracycline (90.1%) and sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim (90.1%). These findings highlighted the potential public health hazards of E. coli and S. aureus pathogens in raw milk sold in informal markets in Egypt.
Highlights
Milk is an important food in Egypt and most of it is sold as raw milk in informal markets
Standard hygienic measures are rarely applied in this kind of production, this study aimed to investigate the prevalence of E. coli and S. aureus as important food-borne pathogens in raw milk collected from informal markets in Kafrelsheikh governorate
A cross-sectional study was conducted between June and December 2014 to determine the prevalence, virulence genes and antibiotic resistance of E. coli and S. aureus as food-borne pathogens in raw milk sold in informal market for residents of Kafrelsheikh governorate
Summary
Milk is an important food in Egypt and most of it is sold as raw milk in informal markets. Methodology: This study was conducted to investigate the public health risks of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus in milk sold in informal markets in Egypt. E. coli isolates showed high resistance for cephalothin (87.5%), ampicillin (68.8%) and tetracycline (68.8%), but were sensitive for gentamicin and chloramphenicol. Conclusion: These findings highlighted the potential public health hazards of E. coli and S. aureus pathogens in raw milk sold in informal markets in Egypt. The case scenario could be worse for developing countries where high rates of milk contamination associated with unhygienic milk production and lack of efficient preservation [4]. E. coli and S. aureus are shed in milk without abnormalities in milk consistency or udder shape; humans may impact their health by consuming or processing milk from these cases
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