Screening of Antibiotic Resistance and Virulence Genes of Enterococcus spp. Strains Isolated from Urfa Cheese

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ÖZMEN TOĞAY S., Karayigit S.

Tarim Bilimleri Dergisi, vol.28, no.2, pp.223-231, 2022 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 28 Issue: 2
  • Publication Date: 2022
  • Doi Number: 10.15832/ankutbd.868213
  • Journal Name: Tarim Bilimleri Dergisi
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, CAB Abstracts, Food Science & Technology Abstracts, Veterinary Science Database, TR DİZİN (ULAKBİM)
  • Page Numbers: pp.223-231
  • Keywords: Urfa cheese, Traditional Turkish cheese, Enterococci, Antibiotic resistance, Virulence genes, Public health
  • Istanbul Medipol University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Enterococcus faecium, E. durans and E. faecalis species were isolated and identified from traditional Urfa cheese samples which were produced from unpasteurized raw milk. The enterococcal load of the cheese samples was between 4.4-5.6 log cfu g−1. High-level tetracycline, streptomycin, erythromycin, gentamycin, and penicillin resistance was determined in the enterococcal isolates. Multiple antibiotic resistance was also determined in E. faecalis (20.4%) and E. faecium (16.3%) strains. 36.7% of the enterococcal isolates were greater than 0.2 MAR index ratio in this study. The gelE and agg2 genes were found in 40 (81.63%) of the enterococcal isolates, whereas the vanB gene was found in 3 (6.12%) of the enterococcal isolates. The results indicate that the consumption of Urfa cheese, which is produced using raw milk, may have public health risk because of its antibiotic resistance characteristics and virulence genes of enterococcal biota.