ISOLATION OF SALMONELLA FROM READY TO EAT FOODS AND THEIR ANTIBIOTIC PROFILE

ABSTRACT

Salmonella species were isolated from ready to eat foods and their antibiotic profile was studied. Meat pie, egg roll, chicken pie and suya were collected from three different places within the MOUAU community and Umuahia town. The study covered an assessment of the bacteria load, Salmonella occurrance and their antibiogram.  The result Obtained showed that the bacteria load was in the range of 1.8 x 106 to 1.0 x 107 cfu/g of the foods while Salmonella specie were observed in the food items. Salmonella sp occurred in 33.3% in egg roll, 44.4% in meat pie, 55.6% in suya and 33.3% in chicken pie. There were variations in the occurrances of Salmonella isolates in the different ready to eat foods. Antibiogram of the isolate showed first the Salmonella isolates were sensitive to the three test drugs Gentamycin, Erythromycin, Oflaxacin with inhibition zones ranging from 15ml to 27mm. The sensitivity of the Salmonella isolates from the different foods was found to vary. It was concluded that the bacteria load of the foods was high and the Salmonella presence was undesirable and has potential of food borne disease. Proper personal and environmental hygiene on the part of all the food handlers was recommended. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title page                                                                                                                    i

Certification                                                                                                                ii

Dedication                                                                                                                   iii

Acknowledgements                                                                                                    iv

Table of contents                                                                                                        v

List of tables                                                                                                               vii

Abstract                                                                                                                       viii

CHAPTER ONE

Introduction                                                                                                                            1

1.1       Background of the study                                                                                 1

1.2       Statement of the problem                                                                               4

1.3       Objectives of the study                                                                                   6

CHAPTER TWO

Literature Review                                                                                                                   7

2.1       Global overview of Salmonellosis                                                                 7

2.2       Hygienic and socio-economic assessment of street food                               8

2.3       Isolation of bacteria from street food                                                             9

2.4       Isolation of Salmonella                                                                                   12

2.5       Identification of bacteria from street food                                                      15

2.6       Antibiogram of bacteria isolated from food samples                                     16

2.7       Antimicrobial resistance                                                                                18

2.8       Safety and public health significance of street food                                       19

CHAPTER THREE

Materials and methods                                                                                                22

3.1       Sources of materials                                                                                       22

3.2       Sample and media preparations                                                                     22

3.3       Determination of bacteria load                                                                       23

3.4       Isolation of Salmonella                                                                                   24.

3.5       Characterization of Salmonella isolates                                                         24

3.6       Identification of microbial isolates                                                                 25

3.7       Antibiogram of Salmonella isolates                                                               25

CHAPTER FOUR

Results                                                                                                                         27

CHAPTER FIVE

Discussion, conclusion and recommendation                                                            33

5.1       Discussion                                                                                                       33

5.2       Conclusion                                                                                                      34

5.3       Recommendation                                                                                                        34       

References                                                                                                                  35

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1:           Bacteria load of ready-to-eat foods                                                    28

Table 2:           Percentage (%) of Salmonella isolate in different ready to eat

food sold within Umuahia                                                                              30

Table 3:           Diameter of inhibition of Salmonella isolates                                                32

Table 4:           Characteristics of Salmonella isolates for ready to eat      

foods sold in Umuahia                                                                                    34

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1       Background of the study

Ready to eat (RTE) foods can be described as food that was meant for immediate consumption at the point of sale. It could be raw or cooked, hot or chilled and can be consumed without further heat treatment (Abraham et al., 2000). Different terms have been used to describe such ready- to- eat foods: These include convenient, ready, instant and fast foods. Examples of such ready to eat foods include pastries, meat pie, sausage, rolls, burger, moin-moin, salad or coleslaw, fried meat, fried chicken, milk and milk products (Akinbode et al., 2011). WHO, (2002) reported that food borne illnesses of microbial origin are a major health problem associated with street- foods as well as fast food centers and this is as a result of the traditional processing methods that are used in preparation, inappropriate holding temperatures and poor personal hygiene of food handlers which are some of the main causes of contamination of street-vended food. Consumers who depend on such foods are more interested in its convenience and usually pay little attention to its safety, quality, and hygiene (Mensah et al., 2002, Muinde and Kuria, 2005: Barbara et al., 2000). Street foods are frequently associated with diarrhoea diseases which occur due to improper use of additives, the presence of pathogenic bacteria, environmental contaminants and disregard of good manufacturing practices (GMPs) and good hygiene practices (GHPs). Barbara, Bair-Parker and Grahame (2000) reported that vendors are often poorly educated, unlicensed, untrained in food hygiene and they work under crude unsanitary conditions with little or no knowledge about the causes of food borne disease. According to Fisseha et al. (2006), food borne diseases are diseases resulting from ingestion of bacteria, toxins and cells produced by microorganisms present in food. Data on issues of food borne diseases are well documented worldwide (Gundogan et al., 2006). Food borne illnesses is a major international health problem with consequent economic reduction (Dominguez et al., 2002). Ekperigin and Nagaraja (2000) recorded that outbreaks of food borne diseases are caused by those that are contaminated intrinsically or that become contaminated during harvesting, processing or preparation. In most countries, the most common food–borne illness is Staphylococcus food intoxication (Abdalla et al., 2009). Enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus strains and E. coli strains have been isolated from foods implicated in illnesses (Adesiyun et al., 2001, Ateba et al., 2010).

Food is of paramount importance to the sustenance of human health. However, the preparations of food usually result into their inadvertent contamination (Headrick et al., 2001). In developing countries wide variety of foods, which include vegetables, confectionary meat and meat products and poultry are usually prepared by food vendors. Street- vended foods provide a source of inexpensive, convenient and often nutritious food for urban and rural poor; a major source of income for a vast number of persons, particularly women; and a chance for self-employment and the opportunity to develop business skills with low capital investment (WHO, 2004). In Nigeria, vended food is intimately connected with take-out, junk food, snacks, and fast food; it is distinguished by its local flavour and by being purchased on the street, with or without entering any building. Both take-out and fast food are often sold from counters inside buildings (Chukwuemeka et al., 2011). In spite of numerous advantages offered by street foods, there are also several health hazards associated with this sector of the economy The problems associated with the methods of consumption of vended foods considerably arise from traditional processing and packaging, improper handling temperature, poor personal hygiene of food handlers. Contamination of vended food may occur during and after processing of such food. Contamination of ready-to-eat food by organisms such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., Proteus spp., Salmonella spp., Pseudomonas spp. and Enterobacter spp. from vended foods (Kaneko et al., 1999) is of primary concern because of the risk of these organisms in the outbreak of food-borne diseases such as gastroenteritis, dysentery, typhoid fever etc. and may as well serve as reservoir of genes for antimicrobial resistance in pathogenic organisms (Kaneko et al., 1999). Recently, there has been increasing patronage of vended foods in Lagos by citizenry due to its easy access, cheapness and affordability. This has led to unprecedented upsurge food vendors seen on the streets of Lagos particularly by the road sides coupled with noticeable increase in cases of diarrhea associated illnesses and concomitant treatment failure. It was in line with this that the present study was initiated with a view to determining bacterial agents associated with the vended foods and to investigating antibacterial resistance of the isolates.

Salmonella are well-known pathogens, highly adaptive and capable of causing disease in humans and/or animals. Salmonella infections are capable of producing serious infections that are often food borne and present as gastroenteritis. However, a small percentage of these infections may become invasive and result in bacteremia and extra intestinal disease (Fluit, 2005). The main reservoirs for non-typhoidal Salmonella are animals such as poultry, livestock, pets and reptiles. Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi and Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi colonize only humans and are often acquired through feacally contained food or water, a person who has typhoid fever, or from chronic carriers (CIDRAP, 2006). 

While some serovars of Salmonella enterica such as Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi, Salmonella. enterica serovar Paratyphi, Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis and Salmonella enterica serovar Derby cause disease in humans and a variety of animals, other serovars are highly restricted to a specific host such as Salmonella enterica serovar Gallinarum in poultry and Salmonella enterica serovar Abortus-ovis in sheep. Salmonella infections range from gastrointestinal infections that are accompanied by inflammation of intestinal epithelia, diarrhoea and vomiting, to typhoid fever, a life threatening infection (Hensel, 2004). The outcome of Salmonella infections is determined by the host and the status of the bacterium. Whereas, age, genetic and environmental factors mainly determine the status of the host, for the bacterium it is determined by virulence factors (Alphons et al., 2005).

Serotypes adapted to man, such as Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi and Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi, usually cause severe diseases in humans as a septicaemic typhoidic syndrome (enteric fever). These serotypes are not usually pathogenic to animals. Serotypes that are highly adapted to animal hosts, such as Salmonella enterica serovar Gallinarum (poultry) or Salmonella enterica serovar Abortus-ovis (sheep) usually produce very mild symptoms in man (Fluit, 2005).

 Salmonellosis is one of the most emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases in the world (WHO, 2004). The high prevalence of Salmonellosis is attributed to lack of adequate water supply, poor sewage effluent disposal coupled with contaminated foods (Jones, 2005). About 1,195 outbreaks of Salmonellosis were reported in Brazil in 2007, with 22.6 % of them provoked by the consumption of foods with raw eggs (Wray and Davies, 2001).

1.2       Statement of the Problem

The emergence of migratory ready-to-eat food vendors call for concern because, while the stationary and ambulatory vendors can exercise some food safety caution in order to produce safe product for their clients, and for fear that a bad product can lead to low patronage by consumers or outright confrontation by customers because the vendor is known by their fixed station/location/routes. The migratory vendors have no fixed station/location/route. They move to different routes and locations on highways via commercial motorcycles/vehicles, and their movement is dependent on newly identified failed portions on the highways, repair/construction works on the highways, security posts (check points) accident spots on the highways and possibly they move to different locations/routes to deliberately sale bad products. Ready-to-eat foods have been reported to be easily available, affordable, provide diverse/variable food source, employment and with a potential for improving food security and nutritional status and general social security it is however, a veritable source of food borne pathogen (Mensah et al., 2002).

Salmonellosis is an important global health problem which causes substantial morbidity and thus it has a significant economic impact. In spite of the improvement in hygiene, food processing, education of food handlers and information to the consumers, food borne diseases are still prevalent and most important health problem in most countries (Dominguez et al., 2002). Many foods, particularly those of animal origin, have been identified as vehicles of transmission of these pathogens to human beings and spreading them to the processing and kitchen environment (Uyttendaele et al., 2002).

The intensity of the signs and symptoms may vary with the amount of contaminated food ingested and susceptibility of the individuals to the toxin. Escherichia coli is commonly used as surrogate indicator, its presence in food generally indicate direct and indirect fecal contamination. It has been reported that in many countries of the world, there were lots of people who have suffered or even died from food poisoning arising from food spoilage especially young children (WHO, 2004). The need by the vendors to focus more on food hygiene as well as the regulatory agencies to ensure compliance with approved standard underscored the execution of this project work.

1.3       Objectives of the Study

The purpose of this study is focused on assessing the bacteriological quality of some ready to eat foods sold in Umuahia, Abia state.

The aim and objectives of this study:

i.               To investigate the isolation and characterization of bacteria.

ii.              To determine the occurrence of Salmonella sp in food samples.

iii.            To ascertain the total counts in food samples.

iv.            To bring to lime light the Antibiotic profile of Salmonella sp.

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