Variability and antibiotics resistance of Staphylococcus sp. flora among the cattle carcasses

Abstract

The qualities of meat products are influenced by many factors such as bacteria species mostly implicated in food-borne disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the antibiotic resistance of the coagulase positive and negative Staphylococcus and the toxin production of S. aureus strains isolated from cattle carcasses collected in the abattoir of Cotonou - Porto Novo. A total of 240 cattle carcasses were sampled by excision at four sites (shoulder, flank, neck and the thigh). Samples were examined for their contamination by coagulase positive and negative Staphylococcus species. The antibiotic resistance profile of all the isolated species was investigated by disc diffusion method. The production of 4 toxins was investigated by immune diffusion method. About 64% of the collected samples were contaminated by 15 different Staphylococcus strains. The thigh samples were contaminated by 11 difference species and the S. hyicus stains were isolated from only from shoulder samples. The S. aureus strains, were resistantat 90% to oxacillin, cefoxitin and penicillin G. No resistant S. aureus was recorded with two antibiotics (ciprofloxacin and streptomycin). The coagulase negative strains, were highly resistant to oxy-tetracycline (73.6%) andpenicillin G (64.6%). Epidermolysins were produced by 40% (ETA) and 50% (ETB) of S. aureus stains and none of them produced LPV and LukE/D. This result reaffirms the potentially critical role that can play commensals in public health.