Abstract:

Abstract Introduction: Antimicrobial resistance is a public health problem. Foods may be carriers of antimicrobial resistant bacteria and resistance genes for humans. Objective: To isolate, identify, and evaluate the antimicrobial susceptibility and identification of resistance genes and integrons in Escherichia coli strains isolated from Minas Frescal cheese. Method: The presence of E. coli in thirty samples of Minas Frescal cheese was evaluated through the 3M™ Petrifilm plates. Thirty . coli isolates were evaluated through the Disk Diffusion Susceptibility Test for 17 antimicrobial agents. Through PCR and Multiplex PCR the isolates were examined for the presence of 24 antimicrobial resistance genes. Genes and variable regions of class 1, 2 and 3 integrons were also evaluated. Results: Phenotypic resistance to one or more classes of antimicrobial agents were found in 50% of E. coli isolates. One hundred percent of the isolates showed PCR amplification for the blaTEM gene and there was also amplification for blaSHV and tetB genes. In addition, 46.6% of the phenotypically resistant isolates amplified to one or more classes of integrons. This is one of the first studies to identify these genes in Minas Frescal cheese in Brazil. Conclusions: Cheese can be a source of multiresistant bacteria and those can disseminate their resistance genes to other bacteria being in the food and human gastrointestinal tract, emphasizing the importance of Good Manufacturing Practices and greater supervision on products on sale.

Keywords: