Antimicrobial Resistance Phenotype of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli Isolates Obtained from Meat in the Formal and Informal Sectors in South Africa

Abstract

Background. Foodborne diseases (FBD) caused by resistant pathogens are a global public health problem. One main driver of the increasing FBD incidence is the transfer of pathogenic organisms from animal guts to carcasses during processing and subsequent transfer from meat products to consumers. Methods. In this study, meat samples from abattoirs in the formal meat sector (FMS) (n=140) and slaughter points in the informal meat sector (IMS) (n=104) were collected for microbial detection and phenotypic AMR determination using polymerase chain reaction. Results. The antibiogram of Staphylococcus aureus isolates revealed that resistance to clindamycin (74.3%) and ampicillin (59.5%) was highest in the FMS, while resistance to penicillin (83.8%) and tetracycline (82.1%) was highest in the IMS. Escherichia coli isolates show significant resistance to chloramphenicol (90.7%) and tetracycline (82.3%) in the FMS. Likewise, resistance to tetracycline (92.3%) and sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim (87.5%) was highest in the IMS. The multiple antibiotic resistance index (MARI) for S. aureus and E. coli ranged from 0.3 to 0.8 and 0.2 to 0.5, respectively. Conclusion. This study suggests high-level contamination of meat with resistant pathogens and highlights the public health consequences associated with consuming such unhygienic products.

Staphylococcus aureus in Intensive Pig Production in South Africa: Antibiotic Resistance, Virulence Determinants, and Clonality

“…This prevalence was considerably higher than the 12% reported in another South African study conducted in 2017 assessing MRSA prevalence in commercial pig herds in the Western Cape, KwaZulu Natal, and Gauteng [ 20 ]. A lower prevalence was also reported in another South Africa study assessing the formal (30%) and informal (50%) meat sectors with isolates obtained from meats samples in abattoirs and slaughtering points [ 21 ]. These differences in prevalence may reflect the sampling framework used.…”

Antibiotic Susceptibility of Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from Retailed Raw Beef at Choba Market, Rivers State

“…In contrast to the findings of this study, Waters et al [22] reported a 0.00% resistance of S. aureus in US meat and poultry to cloxacillin. The 88.88% resistance to tetracycline is not within the range (25.00 to 82.1%) reported by previous authors [2,8,10,22,26,27,28] though comparable to the 82.10% reported by Jaja et al [2]. This could be due to varied usage of various antibiotic products in each country, as different countries have different products available and registered for use in different species.…”

“…This could be due to varied usage of various antibiotic products in each country, as different countries have different products available and registered for use in different species. Varying resistance of S. aureus from raw meat have been reported also by a number of authors, ranging from 25.00% to 73.30% [2,7,26,27,28].…”

“…The S. aureus strains were least resistant to gentamycin (22.22%) and cotrimoxazole (38.89%). A number of authors have reported gentamicin resistance of S. aureus from raw meat ranging from 0.00% to 19.40% [2,8,10,15,26,27,28]. This may not be unconnected with the fact that it is in injection form and hardly abused, unlike a vast majority of antibiotics that come in capsule or tablet forms.…”

“…Meat of animal origin is the major source of protein and valuable qualities of vitamins for most people in many parts of the world, thus they are essential for the growth, repair and maintenance of body cells and necessary for our everyday activities [1,2]. Due to the chemical composition and biological characteristics, meats are highly perishable foods providing excellent source of nutrients for growth of several hazardous microorganisms that can cause infection in humans and spoilage of meat and economic loss [3].…”