The first study in Tetouan to characterize the microbiology, physicochemical properties, and antimicrobial susceptibility of enterobacteria in red fruits with varying statuses

Abstract

Abstract

Red fruits have become increasingly popular due to their many health benefits. As a result, our goal was to perform a microbiological and physicochemical analysis, determine the antimicrobial susceptibility of identified bacteria, and identify the most common molds through microscopic examination. The microbiological analysis revealed that the packed strawberries had a higher degree of contamination, varying from relatively healthy to severely damaged. On the other hand, the analyses of frozen raspberries showed significant levels of total aerobic mesophilic (TAM) and molds & yeasts (M&Y). However, no significant difference was observed in the case of strawberries (kg), packed raspberries, and packed blueberries. None of the samples tested positive for Salmonella spp. or Listeria monocytogenes, but Listeria ivanovii was detected. The physicochemical analysis was consistent with the literature, except for the cherry's moisture content. In the biochemical identification, the bacteria identified were Klebsiella 63,64%, Enterobacter 29,09%, and Hafnia alvei 7,27% isolated from medium VRBL while E.coli 57,69%, Klebsiella 23,07%, and Enterobacter 19,23% isolated from medium Hektöen. The antimicrobial susceptibility test demonstrated that 4/6 of E.coli 1 were resistant to gentamicin (GN) and ticarcillin (TIC), 1 resistant to ciprofloxacin, 4/4 of K.pneumoniae were resistant to TIC and 1/4 resistant to GN and amoxicillin-clavulanate (AMC) respectively, 1/5 of C.sakazakii was resistant to GN and 2/5 resistant to TIC, and 1/3 of E.cloacae was resistant to GN and 3/3 resistant cefoxitin. The microscopic identification of mold showed that Aspergillus spp. had the highest rate of occurrence.