Enterococci from Tolminc cheese: population structure, antibiotic susceptibility and incidence of virulence determinants.
Microbiological analysis of ripened artisanal Tolminc cheese revealed the presence of an enterococcal population in numbers of up to 10(6) per g. All colonies, isolated from the citrate azide tween carbonate (CATC) enterococcal selective medium were Gram positive and coccal-shaped and were analysed with PhenePlate FS system. This system discriminated 10 PhP clusters among the 90 enterococcal isolates. From each cluster the most representative isolate for that particular type was selected for further study. The 10 representative enterococci were catalase negative and grew in the presence of NaCl (2%, 4% and 6.5%) and bile salts (0.06%). Genus specific primers confirmed all 10 enterococcal representatives as Enterococcus members, while species specific primers determined them further as strains of Enterococcus faecalis species. PCR for vanA and vanB genes detection, respectively, amplified no PCR products. The absence of van genes was confirmed with both disc and E-test, as isolates were susceptible to vancomycin according to the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS). The results of disc tests with other antimicrobial agents (ampicillin, vancomycin, kanamycin, penicillin, erythromycin, neomycin, chloramphenicol, clindamycin, rifampin) did not differ much among the tested enterococci: they were all very resistant to clindamycin only. The incidence of enterococcus virulence determinants was as expected: all of the 10 E. faecalis strains tested possessed multiple determinants (between 7 and 11).
University of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Faculty, Zootechnical Department, Chair of Dairy Science, Groblje 3, 1230 Domzale, Slovenia. andreja.canzek@bfro.uni-lj.si
Andreja
A
Canzek Majhenic
Irena
I
Rogelj
Bogdan
B
Perko
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D002374:Catalase / Q000378:metabolism; D002611:Cheese / Q000382:microbiology*; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial; D016983:Enterococcus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D005516:Food Microbiology; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D013045:Species Specificity; D014774:Virulence
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D002374:Catalase