بررسی تنوع گونه ها و الگوی مقاومت آنتی بیوتیکی انتروکوک های جدا شده از سبزی های خشک باز و بسته بندی عرضه شده تهران

Background: Enterococci are gram-positive cocci that have frequently been isolated from animal and vegetable foods. The aim of this study was to identify the prevalence and antibiotic susceptibility of enterococci isolated from seven types of vegetables randomly selected from grocery stores in Tehran. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 140 samples were collected from April to October 2015. Enterococci were detected in samples using the Gram stain and biochemical tests such as catalase reaction, and hydrolyze bile esculin and identified at the species level by the common biochemical tests. Antibiotic susceptibility test of isolates with six antibiotics was also done using the disc diffusion method. Results: Eighty-four out of 140 (60%) samples showed enterococci. Of these, 72.6% belonged to the species Enterococcus faecium. The results showed that 10, 6, 5, 1 and 1 isolates were E.durans, E. gallinarum, E. faecium, E. avium and E.casseliflavus respectively. Low percentages of microorganisms were resistant to tetracycline (15%), ampicillin (4%), and chloramphenicol (4%). A high percentage of microorganisms were resistant to gentamicin (93%), vancomycin (48%), and erythromycin (32%). Conclusion: The results revealed contamination of dried vegetables in Tehran. According to the findings, we conclude that training of dealers and food suppliers are necessary and healthy principals should be followed. Also, supervision on food packing and storage should be considered to prevent food microbial contamination.