Background and Aims:Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most common causes of foodborne disease worldwide, due to the consumption of food contaminated by their toxins. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and the antimicrobial resistance of S. aureus isolated from sausages in Meknes city of Morocco.Materials and Methods:A total of 156 samples (Beef sausages, Turkey sausages, and Artisanal sausages “Merguez”) were collected from different shopping sites (butchery, supermarket, street vendors, and weekly market “Souk”) and used for the isolation of S. aureus. All the isolated strains were tested for their antimicrobials resistance to 16 antibiotics.Results:Our results showed the presence of S. aureus in 63 samples (40.38%). Furthermore, the antimicrobial resistance study showed that 84.13% of isolated S. aureus were resistant to streptomycin, 76.20% to tetracycline, 42.86% to ampicillin, 41.27% to doxycycline, 38.1% to penicillin G, and 19.05% to chloramphenicol with the presence of 25 different phenotypic profiles. However, all isolated strains were sensitive to oxacillin, cefoxitin, gentamicin, and vancomycin.Conclusion:The findings of this study revealed consumption of sausages as a potential risk of foodborne poisonings because of its contamination with the multi-resistant strains of S. aureus. Moreover, this contamination is related to the season, sampling sites and the origin of the raw material.
The authors present a study that estimates the prevalence, sensitivity to antibiotics and distribution of Salmonella spp. serotypes in 20 broiler turkey farm buildings in the north-west of Morocco. Each farm was inspected three times for this purpose; one batch of ten pools of five droppings per farm was sampled on each visit (n = 600) for analysis. The high isolation rate observed for Salmonella spp. (35%) and the serotypes isolated were alarming. The authors found 62 Salmonella-positive isolates and identified nine serotypes: S. Kentucky (21 isolates, 33.8%), S. Parkroyal (10 isolates, 16.3%), S. Agona (7 isolates, 11.3%), S. Saintpaul (6 isolates, 9.6%), S. Typhimurium (5 isolates, 8%), S. Enteritidis and S. Heidelberg (4 isolates each, 6.4%), S. Newport (3 isolates, 4.8%) and S. Ruzizi (2 isolates, 3.2%). The Salmonella spp. antimicrobial resistance results showed that 93.5% (58/62) of the strains were resistant to at least one antibiotic. Multi-resistant strains (resistant to three or more antibiotics) accounted for 80.64% of the strains isolated. The percentage with resistance to ceftazidime (third-generation cephalosporin), ceftriaxone and cefotaxime was lower at 4.8%. Three strains of S. Agona with extended-spectrum beta-lactamase were detected, with a high level of resistance to ceftriaxone and a minimum inhibitory concentration of 16 µg/ml. The variables associated with contamination are linked to: the cleanout period (p = 0.037); antibiotic treatment (p = 0.001); infection of turkey poults at placement (p = 0.002); manure storage (p = 0.003); keeping sick turkeys in the turkey house (p = 0.009); the season (p = 0.001); and the age of the turkeys at the time of sampling (p = 0.01).
Generally an exam, a performance test or a test to be used for summative or evaluation purposes must be prepared according to a definite plan. The present paper aimed at analyzing and evaluating the certificate exam, the study also revealed the questions representation of Bloom's cognitive levels. This article presents also the statistical and psychometric indices that characterize each of the questions (26 items) that make up a certification exam of the Sciences of Life and Earth in a Moroccan high school in Meknes. Indeed, two hundred test copies have been analyzed using the SPSS and Anitem software. The average of goals achieved in activities of knowledge, analysis, understanding and evaluation is 61%, 52%, 37.5%, 58% respectively, but it is only 19% for "application" activity. The success rate in open questions items is only 38.5% against 61.5% for Multiple Choice Questions (MSQ) and closed questions. The internal homogeneity coefficient is greater than 0.8 (α = 0.84), which means that the homogeneity of the instrument has been considered satisfactory. According to the index of difficulty out of the 26 items, two are extremely inferior (P> 0.8), while two others are extremely superior (P <0.2). According to the index of discrimination eleven items meet the conditions of validity, three are not discriminating and twelve should be reviewed. The correlation between the success rate in these items and their difficulty index is high (R = 0.98). In light of the findings, we recommended the necessity of having measurement and evaluation experts in writing questions of exams and we highly recommend the necessity of continuous training of teachers in the field of assessment and evaluation.
Salmonella
is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in humans worldwide, and the infection with multidrug-resistant strains can cause severe diseases. This study was designed to evaluate the antimicrobial resistance, to detect the virulence genes, and to study the genetic diversity of isolated
Salmonella
strains using 16S rRNA sequences. For this, 34
Salmonella
strains isolated from sausages were identified using biochemical and serological methods. Molecular tools were used to evaluate the presence of virulence genes
(orgA, sitC, sipB, spiA, iroN
, and
sifA)
using simplex and multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and to sequence 16S rRNA genes for phylogenetic analysis. The susceptibility to 24 selected antibiotics was also studied. The results of this study showed that all isolated
Salmonella
were positive for targeted virulence genes and were resistant to at least one antibiotic. However, the multidrug resistance was observed in 44% of isolated strains. The phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA sequences highlighted that
Salmonella
isolates were divided into 3 clusters and 3 sub-clusters, with a ≥98% similarity to
Salmonella enterica
species. From this study, we conclude that sausages are considered as a potential source of
Salmonella
, which could be a major risk to public health.
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