title: Prevalence and Molecular Characterization of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Foods of Animal Origin, Turkey.
abstract: In the present study, 175 coagulase-positive Staphylococcus (CPS) isolates recovered from samples of beef (n = 110), raw milk n = 56), and fish (n = 9) were analyzed for methicillin resistance using MIC and PCR assays. Methicillin-resistant (MR) Staphylococcus aureus (SA) isolates were then characterized using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). According to findings, 62 (35.4%) of the isolates (44 from beef, 9 from milk, and 9 from fish) were identified as S. aureus based on the presence of the nuc gene. MRCPS was detected in 18 (10.3%) of 175 CPS isolates based on the presence of the mecA gene. Among these isolates, 15 (24.2%) were MRSA: 4 (26.7%) from beef, 2 (13.3%) from milk, and 9 (60%) from fish. However, based on the MIC assay, 21 (12.0%) of the CPS isolates (1 from beef, 15 from milk, and 5 from fish) were MRCPS, indicating a discrepancy between the results of these two methods. The PFGE results indicated genetic heterogeneity of the isolates; six PFGE clusters were found. These results confirm that MRSA is present in foods of animal origin, which is a concern to human health, and indicate the importance of method selection for determination of methicillin resistance. The identity of MR isolates should be verified by PCR to obtain more reliable results.
authors.affiliation: Department of Water Products Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ondokuz Mayis University, Samsun 55200, Turkey.
authors.forename: Belgin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Siiriken
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Amasya University, Amasya 05100, Turkey.
authors.forename: Tuba
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yildirim
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Ondokuz Mayis University, Samsun 55200, Turkey.
authors.forename: Akif Koray
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Güney
authors.affiliation: Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock, Republic of Turkey, Lodumlu, Ankara 6530, Turkey.
authors.forename: Irfan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Erol
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Ondokuz Mayis University, Samsun 55200, Turkey.
authors.forename: Belma
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Durupinar
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D005516:Food Microbiology; D006801:Humans; D008712:Methicillin; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D015995:Prevalence; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014421:Turkey
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D008712:Methicillin
keywords: Beef; Fish; Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; Milk; Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis