Resumo

Coagulase Positive Staphylococci (CPS) are the causative agents of Staphylococcal Food Poisoning (SFP), one of the most common foodborne diseases worldwide, which are frequently related to foods of animal origin. SPF occurs due to the ingestion of Staphylococcal Enterotoxins (SEs), thermo-resistant proteins that display superantigen activity, causing vomit, abdominal pain and diarrhea. CPS are also the cause of a wide range of other diseases, including many nosocomial infections. Their resistance to many antibiotics have been reason of concern, especially regarding Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). This study aimed to evaluate SEs genes prevalence and antibiotic resistance profile among CPS isolated from chilled and frozen raw chicken meat, as well as identify the isolates at species level. Thirty chicken carcasses were sampled and staphylococci were quantified. The isolates were identified by biochemical tests and submitted to PCR identification of classical SEs genes (sea, seb, sec, sed and see). Their resistance profile to 11 antibiotics was assessed. Fifty CPS were isolated and identified as S. aureus, the most prevalent species (62%), S. hyicus, S. intermedius, S. delphini and S. schleiferi coagulans. Enterotoxin genes were found in 70% of isolates, and the most encountered genes were sea (68%) and sed (26%). One same isolate harbored a maximum of 3 different enterotoxin genes at the same time. Eighty percent of the isolates were resistant at least to one antibiotic and 40% were multiresistant. The highest resistance rates encountered were those to penicillin, teicoplanin, oxacillin and clindamycin. Vancomycin Resistant S. aureus (VISA) and Vancomycin Resistant S. intermedius (VISI) were isolated, presenting MICs of 512 and 54 µg/mL, respectively. In conclusion, CPS isolated from raw chicken meat may represent food safety hazards regarding public health, since high prevalence of staphylococcal enterotoxin genes and high rates of antibiotic resistance were encountered. Moreover, these findings, summed to VISA and VISI detection, may point out the dissemination of potentially pathogenic staphylococci and vancomycin resistance genes outside clinical boundaries.