Full text
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| Author(s): |
Sarah Hwa In Lee
Total Authors: 1
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| Document type: | Master's Dissertation |
| Press: | Pirassununga. |
| Institution: | Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Faculdade de Zootecnica e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZE/BT) |
| Defense date: | 2012-02-28 |
| Examining board members: |
Carlos Augusto Fernandes de Oliveira;
Adriano Gomes da Cruz;
Eliana Setsuko Kamimura
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| Advisor: | Carlos Augusto Fernandes de Oliveira |
| Abstract | |
The objective of the present study was to evaluate the occurrence of biofilm-producing strains of Staphylococcus aureus in the milking environment from 10 farms located in the regions of Franca and Ribeirão Preto, state of São Paulo, Brazil. Twohundred twenty samples of milk from individual cows previously tested for CMT (California Mastitis Test), 120 samples of bulk tank milk, 389 swabs of equipments and utensils related to milking and 120 swabs of milk\'s handlers hands were analyzed. A total of 56 (6.6%) S. aureus strains were isolated out of 849 samples analyzed, being 12 (5.4%) from milk samples from individual cows, 26 (21.6%) from bulk tank milk, 14 (3.6%) from swabs of equipments and utensils, and 4 (3.3%) from swabs hands of milk\'s handlers. Results indicated a low prevalence of S. aureus in the dairy farms analyzed, and there was no significant difference between the percentages found in the two regions evaluated. On the basis of PFGE results (using SmaI enzyme), 31 profiles (pulsotypes) were found. In the biofilm-production assay using microplates, 19 (63.3%) of 30 pulsotypes tested were considered positive (biofilm producers). For assays conducted in stainless steel, 13 (43.3%) of pulsotypes were biofilm producers, although no pulsotype was able to produce biofilms on the surface of silicon. Results of this trial showed a high percentage of bulk tank milk samples contaminated with S. aureus, hence indicating a public health problem especially in Brazil were milk is often consumed without pasteurization. The occurrence of S. aureus pulsotypes which were also biofilm-producers suggests the persistence of the pathogen in several sites at the milking environment, as well the probable involvement of S. aureus biofilms with mastitis and its excretion in the milk. The need for adoption of hygienic practices to prevent the formation of biofilms of S. aureus in the dairy farms evaluated is stressed. (AU) | |
| FAPESP's process: | 09/12301-0 - Biofilm molecular identification of Staphylococcus aureus in milking environment |
| Grantee: | Sarah Hwa In Lee |
| Support Opportunities: | Scholarships in Brazil - Master |