The present study was conducted to evaluate the performance of cefoxitin disc diffusion method and oxacillin broth microdilution method for detection of methicillin resistant S. aureus (MRSA), taking presence of mecA gene as reference. In addition, inducible clindamycin resistance and beta-lactamase production were studied and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of vancomycin for S. aureus isolates was determined. A total of 711 nonrepeated pus/wound swab samples from different anatomic locations were included in the study. The Staphylococcus aureus was identified on the basis of colony morphology, Gram's stain, and biochemical tests. A total of 110 (15.47%) S. aureus isolates were recovered, of which 39 (35.50%) isolates were identified as MRSA by cefoxitin disc diffusion method. By oxacillin broth microdilution method, 31.82% of the Staphylococcus aureus isolates were found to be MRSA. However, mecA gene was present in only 29.1% of the isolates. Further, beta-lactamase production was observed in 71.82% of the isolates, while inducible clindamycin resistance was found in 10% of S. aureus isolates. The MIC value of vancomycin for S. aureus ranged from 0.016 μg/mL to 1 μg/mL. On the basis of the absolute sensitivity (100%), both phenotypic methods could be employed for routine diagnosis of MRSA in clinical microbiology laboratory; however cefoxitin disc diffusion could be preferred over MIC method considering time and labour factor.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess microbial load and Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus from surfaces of public transport vehicle. Methods: The surfaces of public transport vehicle were sampled by swabbing. A total of 56 samples from 28 different vehicles operating in Kathmandu valley were collected and processed according to the standard methodology. The isolates were identified by culture, biochemical tests and subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility testing by modified Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method following CLSI 2013 guidelines. Methicillin resistant species of Staphylococcus were detected by the virtue of cefoxitin resistance. Results: All 56 samples from the 28 different vehicles were found to have bacterial growth with average bacterial load of 2.47±1.22 x 105 CFU/cm2. The gas vehicles were found to be the most contaminated. Out of 56 samples, 35 (25.9%) were found to be S. aureus growth positive 11 (31.4%) of them being MRSA. Conclusion: The high flow of people with different health conditions in public transport makes the exchange of microorganism more significant. High bacterial load along with MRSA indicates the threats of transmission of infection among travellers. This is of a great public health concern as the mass population of different health condition is in direct exposure and is prone to get infected.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to isolate and identify microorganisms of food packaging papers of Kathmandu valley and determine antibiotic susceptibility of the isolates. Methods: A total of 34 food packaging paper samples were collected aseptically from hotels, bakeries and sweet shops (considered as closed shop) and open street vendors and were transported to microbiology laboratory of Golden Gate International College for processing. The isolates were identified by standard microbiological procedures and subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility testing by modified Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method following CLSI guidelines. The rate of Extended Spectrum Beta- lactamase (ESBL) producing and multiple drug resistant (MDR) isolates were also determined. Results: All 34 samples yielded microbial growth with average microbial count of 4.145×105 CFU/g. Among 103 microbial isolates, 78 were bacteria, 15 molds and 10 yeasts. The predominant bacterial and mold isolates were Bacillus spp (43.59%) and Cladosporium spp (46.67%) respectively. Ciprofloxacin (42/43) and Amikacin (42/43) were the most effective and ampicillin (39/43) was most resistant antibiotics for Gram negative bacteria. A total of 9.30% Gram negative isolates were identified as ESBL producing and MDR strains. Conclusion: This result indicates that potential pathogens are found in food packaging papers which can be threat to health of consumers as they may act as a source of food borne infection.