INTRODUCTION: 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. A total of 121 milk samples were analyzed for occurrence, virulence genes and antibiotic resistance of E. coli and S. aureus. RESULTS: 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%). 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. Copyright (c) 2018 Walid Elmonir, Etab Abo-Remela, Azza Sobeih.
INTRODUCTION: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. A total of 121 milk samples were analyzed for occurrence, virulence genes and antibiotic resistance of E. coli and S. aureus. RESULTS: 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%). 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. Copyright (c) 2018 Walid Elmonir, Etab Abo-Remela, Azza Sobeih.