<i>Cronobacter</i> spp. Isolated from Quick-Frozen Foods in China: Incidence, Genetic Characteristics, and Antibiotic Resistance

Qi Li; Chengsi Li; Ling Chen; Zhihe Cai; Shi Wu; Qihui Gu; Youxiong Zhang; Xianhu Wei; Jumei Zhang; Xiaojuan Yang; Shuhong Zhang; Qinghua Ye; Qingping Wu

doi:10.3390/foods12163019

Foods (Aug 2023)

<i>Cronobacter</i> spp. Isolated from Quick-Frozen Foods in China: Incidence, Genetic Characteristics, and Antibiotic Resistance

Qi Li,
Chengsi Li,
Ling Chen,
Zhihe Cai,
Shi Wu,
Qihui Gu,
Youxiong Zhang,
Xianhu Wei,
Jumei Zhang,
Xiaojuan Yang,
Shuhong Zhang,
Qinghua Ye,
Qingping Wu

Affiliations

Qi Li: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Chengsi Li: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Ling Chen: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Zhihe Cai: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Shi Wu: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Qihui Gu: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Youxiong Zhang: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Xianhu Wei: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Jumei Zhang: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Xiaojuan Yang: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Shuhong Zhang: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Qinghua Ye: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Qingping Wu: Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiomics and Precision Application (MARA), Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Microbial Safety and Health, State Key Laboratory of Applied Microbiology Southern China, Institute of Microbiology, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12163019
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 12, no. 16
p. 3019

Abstract

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Cronobacter spp. are emerging foodborne pathogens that cause severe diseases. However, information on Cronobacter contamination in quick-frozen foods in China is limited. Therefore, we studied the prevalence, molecular characterization, and antimicrobial susceptibility of Cronobacter in 576 quick-frozen food samples collected from 39 cities in China. Cronobacter spp. were found in 18.75% (108/576) of the samples, and the contamination degree of the total positive samples was 5.82 MPN/g. The contamination level of frozen flour product samples was high (44.34%). Among 154 isolates, 109 were C. sakazakii, and the main serotype was C. sakazakii O1 (44/154). Additionally, 11 serotypes existed among four species. Eighty-five sequence types (STs), including 22 novel ones, were assigned, indicating a relatively high genetic diversity of the Cronobacter in this food type. Pathogenic ST148, ST7, and ST1 were the main STs in this study. ST4, epidemiologically related to neonatal meningitis, was also identified. All strains were sensitive to cefepime, tobramycin, ciprofloxacin, and imipenem, in which the resistance to cephalothin was the highest (64.94%).Two isolates exhibited multidrug resistance to five and seven antimicrobial agents, respectively. In conclusion, these findings suggest that the comparatively high contamination level of Cronobacter spp. in quick-frozen foods is a potential risk warranting public attention.

Published in Foods

ISSN: 2304-8158 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Technology: Chemical technology
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/foods

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