[Characteristics of Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolated from mussels (Perna perna) commercialized at Niterói, Rio de Janeiro].

The marine ecosystem is the natural habitat of bacteria like Vibrio parahaemolyticus, an important pathogen that cause human gastroenteritis associated with seafood consumption. In the present investigation, the presence of V. parahaemolyticus in 86 in natural and precooked mussel samples was evaluated. Vibrio parahaemolyticus was isolated from 11.6% of the in natural and precooked mussels. All strains tested were urease-positive and 28.5% were Kanagawa-positive, which suggests that they have pathogenic potential for humans. There was predominance of the O10:K52 serotype and the emerging O3:K6 strain was identified. These results show the epidemiological relevance of V. parahaemolyticus in cases of human gastroenteritis following mussel consumption without adequately cooking them (100 degrees C/15 min). Moreover, it is important to alert the Brazilian Sanitary Surveillance authorities regarding their presence in the food chain and their public health risks.